A Last Look at the Art of Inner Sea Races

Friday, October 2, 2015

Inner Sea Races just released this week! I've picked some of my favorite illustrations for this preview, and a wallpaper for you to download!

Download Standard | Download Widescreen | Download Mobile

Illustration by Romanov Pavel

Illustrations by Mariusz Gandzel, Aleksey Bayura, Damien Mammoliti, Fabio Gorla, Firat Solhan, and Nikolai Ostertag

Sarah Robinson
Managing Art Director

Inner Sea Races: Rules for Every Race

Thursday, September 24, 2015

Illustration by Mattias Fahlberg

In previous previews of Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Races we've highlighted the cultures, heritages, art, and secrets you'll find in this massive hardcover. But what we haven't said much about are the rules—and there certainly are a ton of them. A whole chapter, in fact, heaped with new feats, spells, magic items, alternate racial traits, and plenty more! Regardless of your race, you'll find new tricks and tools that are perfect for your character and that make your rooting in the Inner Sea's lore more meaningful than ever before.

For example, check these out:

Child of Two Fates

You have learned to make the most of your torn existence.

Prerequisites: Knowledge (local) 5 ranks, half-elf.

Benefit: Once per day, you can select a teamwork feat that a human or elf ally within 30 feet possesses. You can ignore any race, ethnicity, or racial trait prerequisites, but you must still meet any other prerequisites for that feat to gain this benefit. You're treated as if you possess that feat for up to 1 minute, as long as you stay within 30 feet of the ally whose teamwork feat you have chosen to emulate.

Champion's Bout (Shoanti)

School enchantment (compulsion) [mind-affecting]; Level bard 3, cleric 3, mesmerist 3

Casting Time 1 round

Components V, S

Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)

Targets two creatures

Duration 1 round/level

Saving Throw Will negates (see text); Spell Resistance yes (see text)

You allow two chosen champions to fight without interference. The two creatures must be willing in order for the spell to work. After you cast this spell, any creature attempting to aid or hinder either of the two targets in any way must succeed at a Will save or lose its action instead (spell resistance applies). A creature that fails its Will save against champion's bout cannot attempt to interfere again. If a creature successfully interferes with the bout, the spell ends immediately.

Duplicitous (Kitsune)

Many kitsune prefer to avoid the attention they often attract from human neighbors and attempt to convince all around them that they are human. They gain a +2 racial bonus on Bluff and Disguise checks. This racial trait replaces kitsune magic.

And there's plenty more where those came from. Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Races hits store shelves next week! Have you figured out where you're getting your copy?

F. Wesley Schneider
Editor-in-Chief

Where Are You From?!

Friday, September 18, 2015

This Inner Sea Races art preview focuses on human ethnicities. Our next preview will be non-human humanoid races. Enjoy!

Illustration by David Alvarez

Illustrations by Mariusz Gandzel, Eva Widermann, Keri Ruediger, and Nemanja Stankovic

Sarah Robinson
Managing Art Director

The Inner Sea Races Heritage Appendix

Thursday, September 17, 2015

Illustration by Carolina Eade

The majority of Inner Sea Races focuses on how the human ethnicities and non-human races of Golarion see themselves, are seen by others, fit into the world, and interact with one another. However, Chapter 4 focuses on the mechanics of building and equipping characters of different races and ethnicities, and contains a wealth of different traits, feats, spells, and equipment for creating a vibrant character immersed in the culture and practices of his or her homeland. It also features a handy heritage appendix, which summarizes the mechanical effects of choosing a particular race for your character in one place.

One of my favorite features in this chapter is a short section written by Creative Director James Jacobs, explaining that a character raised in a region where Taldane (Common) is not the most widely spoken tongue can choose their regional language as their starting language instead of Common. From a mechanical perspective, it makes sense to give all characters a language in common. However, from an in-world perspective, it seems odd that a character born and raised in Wati would grow up speaking Taldane and have to learn Osiriani as a second language, rather than the other way around. So, I'm glad that Inner Sea Races allows players and GMs to choose to represent that Taldane isn't a native tongue for many of the residents of the Inner Sea region.

Whenever the Common tongue is listed as a race's starting language (or among the race's available choices for starting languages or bonus languages), you can substitute for Common any of the other widely used human languages listed on page 6 (for example, an elf who was born and raised in Varisia might choose Varisian as one of the bonus languages she knows due to a high Intelligence score, or a gnome raised in an isolated monastery in Jalmeray might speak Vudrani as his native tongue rather than Common). In these cases, Common always remains an option to choose at a later date if you wish.

In other news: aquatic elf enthusiasts, rejoice! The heritage appendix in Inner Sea Races now presents the stats for aquatic elves in the same format as those for all the other races of the Inner Sea region. You'll be able to find them on page 242!

Jessica Price
Project Manager

10 Secrets from Inner Sea Races

Thursday, September 10, 2015

Illustration by Eva Widermann

Today we take a look at 10 little known facts about the races and cultures of Golarion. Check out Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Races, releasing this month, for more!

1. In southern Garund lies the catfolk nation of Murraseth. Non-catfolk are rarely allowed inside its borders, and rumors persist of a great danger hidden at Murraseth’s center.
2. Merfolk, cecaelia, siyokoy, and tritons are all rather appalled at the way gillmen plunder the ocean for "treasures," then exaggerate the history and importance of these objects when selling them to land-dwellers.
3. Strix families are usually organized around sibling relationships, rather than romantic partners.
4. Kellids often interpret arcane magic in a spiritual context.
5. Despite all evidence to the contrary, Taldans do not believe that their empire is in decline.
6. The Order of Transcendent Reclamation is a school of gnomes dedicated to attaining and surviving the Bleaching in order to achieve what they believe is a metamorphosis into a higher form of being.
7. Halflings consider unexpected greetings to be an unlucky omen, so they often nod at one another silently and wait for recognition before speaking a greeting out loud.
8. The first drow noble house, Dolour, gained its name when its founder, Arishkirah, murdered her mother and rejected her family name of Alevonnar.
9. Only about a quarter of orc warriors survive to see their twentieth year.
10. Stories of Karfus the Golden-Horned, a tiefling merchant prince, have drawn many other tieflings to follow the Prophecies of Kalistrade.

Jessica Price
Project Manager

A Look at Cultures in Inner Sea Races

Thursday, September 3, 2015

With the release of Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Races just around the corner, we're kicking off previews of the new content heading your way today! Here's a look at one of the books new features:

Each human ethnicity and non-human core race has a sidebar giving tips on how to play a character from that culture. These tips include both elements that are common to that culture, such as the likely educational background and religious attitudes for characters from that culture, and descriptions of the way other residents of the Inner Sea region are likely to view them. Above are examples from two human ethnicities and two non-human races.

Look out for more content sneak peeks of Inner Sea Races in the coming weeks!

Jessica Price
Project Manager

The Tax Man Cometh!

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Hold fast adventurers! You may have earned your bounties chasing down bandits, or by slaying ferocious predators threatening farmers, but those roads you travel upon and the cities you spend your gold in require upkeep. Open up your money purses and remember—this is for the good of us all! It's time for a bit of lighthearted tax season fun!

Taxfest

On the 15th day of the month of Gozran, Abadaran priests accompany local tax collectors to ensure a fair and respectful collection of monies owed, as well as to ensure no foul play occurs on either side. The church does not believe in free handouts (indeed, going so far as to charge for healing services and scrolls), but on Taxfest, Abadarans put on a lavish feast to as many people as they can fit in their halls. In addition to the free meal, Taxfest provides a means for common folk to discuss directly with civic leaders on how best to spend the newly collected tax funds.

But while the celebrations take place, other members of the church are hard at work in the vaults and accounting offices of cities and nations everywhere.

Accountomancers

For some members of the Abadaran clergy, the truth held in Abadar's holy book, The Order of Numbers is more important than the rest of faith's trappings. Less often clerics, oracles, or paladins, in truth these "accountomancers" (as they refer to themselves) are folk who have mastered the intricacies of mathematics and numbers to further Abadar's purpose in Golarion. Residing in the banks and temples of Abadar, accountomancers ensure that proper procedures from The Order of Numbers are adhered to, and carry a ring of golden keys to indicate their rank. The most senior members of the order are addressed as Watcher, and bear a single large, unadorned gold key. Arbiter inevitables are the preferred familiar of accountomancers, as their flight allows the arbiter to assist accountomancers in the high shelves and expansive vaults, or any creature capable of climbing (like monkeys) or flying (like ravens).

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Upon the completion of their personal copies of The Order of Numbers, accountomancers usually keep to the church of Abadar, administering to the collection and allocation of city taxes, assisting inquisitors who seek out tax evaders, or offering assistance on business practices and employment to gain Abadar's favor. The best accountomancers are sought out by archbankers and merchant guildmasters to review the financial health of city and guild, and these different divisions work closely together to support accuracy, completeness, compliance, justness, and order in their cities.

Taxfest is the holiest day for accountomancers, for while the cities of Golarion are deep in celebration, they busily record all of the past year's data in The Eternal Ledger. A holy book for accountomancers, the Ledger is held in a new city each year, with accountomancers making the journey to the host city to take part in the Ritual of Transference. The rite copies the entries in The Eternal Ledger to a copy held in the First Vault, and the city's accountomancers enjoy the prestige—and magical bonuses to many of their skills—granted by the holy tome.

Known Powers

Over the centuries of their existence, accountomancers have developed unique skills that have use far outside their dusty basements and dim offices.

Massari Method

School divination; Level cleric/oracle 1, inquisitor 1, sorcerer/wizard 1
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, F (miniature abacus)
Range 30 ft.
Target see text
Duration 1 round/level

Developed by a pair of accountomancers dedicated to rooting out corrupt city officials in 4027 A.R., this spell was repurposed into combat applications when they had to chase down the offenders. When casting this spell, designate an ally within 30 feet. When you and your ally flank the same target, you gain an additional +2 insight bonus on melee attacks.

New Major Hex

In Triplicate (Su): As a full-round action, a witch can demand a target within 60 feet repeat its previous actions, or suffer the consequence. If the target fails a Will save, it must repeat the same actions that it did in the round previous, in the same order, against the same target (if applicable), for three rounds. If the target cannot repeat its actions, it suffers the effects of the misfortune hex for that round, but if it does manage to repeat three rounds, it gains the effect of the fortune hex for one round. If repeating an action would be suicidal or obviously harmful, the target may make a new Will save. You must have the fortune or misfortune hex in order to take this hex. This is an enchantment (compulsion) effect, and if a creature succeeds on their saving throw against this effect, it is immune for 24 hours. Cackle cannot extend the duration of this hex.

Fallen Accountomancers

Oaths taken by these Abadaran elite are not taken lightly, and oathbreakers viewed with a curious mix of derision, horror, and grudging admiration. Fraudulent and dishonest acts performed by an accountomancer while performing their duties are punished harshly, and immediately. Depending upon the crimes committed, stories tell of inevitables hunting down fallen members and permanently branding them, cutting them off from the source of their powers, or being cursed with poverty and ill fortune. Such axiomatic brands, often in the shape of a blackened and broken key of Abadar, are permanent, and even Katapesh merchants hesitate before dealing with one of these marked individuals.

Noted Abadarans

Archbanker Darb Tuttle (Guide to Korvosa), Black Olan (Pathfinder Adventure Path #8: "Seven Days to the Grave"), Howell Backus Talbot III (NPC Guide, Wayfinder #3), Jostlin Ferqyr (Guide to Absalom), Poss (Pathfinder Adventure Path #8: "Seven Days to the Grave").

Read more about the Master of the First Vault in Inner Sea Gods, and let us know what else you want to read about in the world of Golarion!

Liz Courts
Community Manager

Special thanks to our Counter of Magic Beans, Ashley Kaprielian!

Independent Ilsurian

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Illustration by Mark Molnar

The many settlements from Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Towns of the Inner Sea show smaller locations throughout the world of Golarion that are perfect for telling stories on a small scale. Radically changing the political or cultural face of a large city make be a massive ordeal taking up most of a campaign, but doing so in a town might take only the course of one adventure and happen at a lower level. The Varisian town of Ilsurian is a primarily peaceful place, but the dangers around the town could close in at any moment!

Ilsurian was founded by the Chelish expatriate Ilsur, and their independence from the tyranny of that diabolic state gave the town their identity. They pride themselves on their independence and discipline, and everybody who comes of age in the town knows how to use a weapon. Think of them like fairweather patriots: they talk a good game and know a few things, but they're no soldiers.

If you want a good kick-off to a campaign that starts in Ilsurian, Pathfinder Module: Murder's Mark takes you there, and you can use the description in Towns of the Inner Sea to flesh out the adventure further. And not to say too much about the plot of that adventure, but it's possible some real estate might free up in town for the PCs to snag on the cheap so they can set up a home base...

Logan Bonner
Developer

Hometowns of the Inner Sea

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Illustration by Mark Molnar

The other day, Wes showed up in our cube with a treat: a peak at an advance copy of Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Towns of the Inner Sea. I finally got to see my town, Solku, in print!

When the list of available towns came out, I immediately jumped on Solku, excited to explore this diverse corner of our world. Solku isn't as famous as the much larger city of Katapesh, but it's a fascinating place: founded by cultists fleeing persecution, preyed on by gnolls and fellow Katapeshi alike, at once pious, mercantile, and afraid. It's decidedly good, but that doesn't mean life there is easy (as exemplified by the story of Solku's most famous resident, the iconic paladin Seelah)—the town is plagued by frequent attacks by gnoll bandits and slavers, and crowded with long-term refugees. Being good also doesn't guarantee the well-intentioned inhabitants all get along; the widening rift between the civilian government and Sarenrae's church is another major source of tension in the town. And, of course, Solku also has its fair share of con artists, madmen, and more!

I tried to write about Solku like it was my own hometown—with a tangled mix of love and pride and frustration. After all, while this book is partly about showing that adventure isn't found only in dungeons and major cities, it's also about exploring places and cultures that your characters could call home!

Judy Bauer
Editor

Night of the Pale

Monday, December 19, 2011

Night of the Pale is mentioned on page 249 of Pathfinder Campaign Setting: The Inner Sea World Guide. We are advised it is a night of morbid revelry, as people wait indoors for the ghosts of last year’s dead to pass by their homes.

Creative Director James Jacobs wrote the description below of the Night of the Pale and beneath that you’ll find a special Pathfinder Society Chronicle sheet you can download and apply to a Pathfinder Society character.

Illustration by John Gravato

Not all of Golarion’s holidays and festivals are times of rejoicing and delight. Holidays worshiped by dark and sinister cults and religions tend to be hidden affairs, their rituals and ceremonies involving cruelties and vile practices that send shivers of fear through gentler society. Scholars suspect that the Night of the Pale—a holiday that traditionally takes place on the last day of the year, the 31st of Kuthona—has links to several sinister religions, but today no one church has specific association with the event. Nonetheless, the Night of the Pale is an event that many look forward to all year, whether in fear or excitement.

On the Night of the Pale, it is said that the ghosts of those who died during the previous year manifest upon the world and come to visit the homes they lived in during life. Although some might think that the chance of seeing even the shade of a dearly departed one might be a blessing, the Night of the Pale is not a time for tearful reunions, for these ghosts, tradition says, do not return out of love for those they left behind but out of darker compulsions. Lingering jealousy, unfinished arguments, or the simmering need for revenge are said to be what compels the dead to return to torment the living on the Night of the Pale.

The evening of this night in many communities is celebrated by a morbid feast, the food prepared with themes revolving around graveyards, the dead, and other spooky traditions. This feast, on one level, helps the celebrants to make light of their fears while sharing good company with similarly nervous neighbors, but at another level is believed to placate vengeful spirits as toasts are raised to the memories of the recently departed. These feasts include retellings of favorite memories of the departed, in hopes of reminding the approaching ghosts of brighter and kinder memories than those that compel them to return. The feast always ends at least an hour before midnight in order to give participants time to return home, decorate doors and windows with salt and other trinkets taken from the feasting table (salted bread baked into crook-like shapes are a favorite, as these can be hung from doorknobs and eaves) to ward off evil spirits, and hide in their bedrooms until dawn. Brave youths and adventurers often deliberately stay out after midnight, either to dare the ghosts to challenge them or simply for the thrill of bucking tradition. Every Night of the Pale, it seems, there are disappearances among those who stay out after midnight, although whether these vanishings are the result of dissatisfied locals taking the opportunity to run away from home, murderers or wild animals or other mundane dangers, or the vengeful spirits carrying off their victims depends upon the circumstances.

The morning after a Night of the Pale is also the first day of the new year—a time that many celebrate more as a relief for surviving the night before than in anticipation of what the new year might bring, although regional preferences for how this day is celebrated vary enough that no single tradition holds over the other. Save, of course, the lingering fears of what dread spirits might come knocking upon warded doors one year away...

As always, I am interested in reading your thoughts on future holiday write-ups and boons. This is especially true in regard to the various equinoxes and solstices.

Download the Night of the Pale Boon! - (111 KB zip/PDF) This Boon is no longer available as of 1/9/12.

Mike Brock
Pathfinder Society Campaign Coordinator

Seven Veils Celebration

Monday, November 21, 2011

The Jestercap blog and boon seemed well received last month so I decided to try out another holiday this month.

Seven Veils is mentioned on page 249 of Pathfinder Campaign Setting: The Inner Sea World Guide. We are advised it is a celebration of brotherhood between all civilized races, marked by interracial masquerade balls. I thought this seemed like a neat holiday and decided it should be expanded upon.

Once again, creative Director James Jacobs wrote the description the holiday, and you will find a special Pathfinder Society Chronicle sheet you can download and apply to a Pathfinder Society character.

Illustration by Eric Belisle

Diversity is a fact of life in the Inner Sea region—not only do numerous human ethnicities mix and live among each other throughout the area, but races entirely separate from humanity dwell there as well. It’s not uncommon to see elves brushing shoulders with humans in marketplaces, gnomes working as merchants in dwarven settlements, or tengus serving aboard ships mostly helmed by humans. Indeed, two of the more widespread races in the Inner Sea region—the half-orc and the half-elf—are the specific results of diverse unions.

The holiday known as Seven Veils, which takes place on the 23rd of Neth in most realms found in the Inner Sea region, is a celebration of this diversity—a time when social boundaries break down even further in a day-long event filled with dancing, feasting, and courting. The evening traditionally closes out with the Seven Veil masquerade, a ball wherein the participants wear disguises that either hide their actual race and/or gender (often using minor magical trinkets and spells) or specifically disguise these features as entirely new characteristics. At the end of the ball, the participants remove their disguises to their partners, often with unpredictable and sometimes delightfully awkward results. Traditionalists and conservative minds often find the Seven Veils masquerades to be scandalous or off-putting, yet they remain particularly popular in most of the larger cities of the land.

Historians note that the original "Dance of the Seven Veils" has a much different genesis than one promoting diversity—the mysterious cult of Sivanah, goddess of illusions, mystery, and reflections, is generally cited as the source of this festival, and indeed, worshipers of the goddess (herself known as the Seventh Veil) count the 23rd of Neth as one of their most sacred of days. What rituals the church of Sivanah performs on this date, however, are unknown to outsiders, for the cult enjoys its secrets. This secrecy has, unsurprisingly, given rise to all manner of sinister rumor, yet when Seven Veils rolls around each year, its eager participants are quick to set aside rumor in preference for the night’s fun and games.

I am interested in reading your thoughts, not only on Jestercap and Seven Veils, but also on future holiday write-ups and boons. This is especially true in regard to the various equinoxes and solstices.

Download the Seven Veils Boon! - (111 KB zip/PDF) This Boon is no longer available as of 12/12/11.

P.S. Don't forget to check out the Pathfinder Tales author chats on tonight, November 21, hosted by Master of Ceremonies Dave Gross!

Mike Brock
Pathfinder Society Campaign Coordinator

Celebrating Jestercap

Monday, October 24, 2011

Since I have been involved with Pathfinder Society, one thing I have heard mentioned by players on numerous occasions is that they wish they could learn more about Golarion and incorporate that knowledge into their Pathfinder Society character. After thinking on different ways to make this happen, it occurred to me that Golarion has quite a few holidays mentioned in Faiths of Balance, Faiths of Corruption, Faiths of Purity, and The Inner Sea World Guide. As in the real world, where holidays are important to all of us, holidays in Golarion are important to our characters and the NPCs spread out across the world.

Every so often, I will write a blog that details a holiday in Golarion to help Pathfinder Society characters share in the spirit of the holiday. Creative Director James Jacobs wrote the description below for the first holiday in this series: Jestercap, mentioned on page 249 of The Inner Sea World Guide. At the end of the description, you will find a special Pathfinder Society Chronicle sheet you can download and apply to a Pathfinder Society character.

Jestercap occurs at the end of the month of Lamashan, traditionally on the 27th (although a few regions have taken to moving the exact day around slightly so it always falls on the last Starday of the month, allowing people who wish to celebrate in excess to have the following day of rest to recover). While Jestercap has been embraced with excited open arms by the gnome communities of the Inner Sea region, its original genesis is said to have been in one of Taldor’s coastal cities not long after King Aspex the Even-Tongued broke from the nation, significantly weakening Taldor’s power and beginning that nation’s long decline. The holiday was originally intended to distract the distraught Taldan populace with a night of revelry and comedic entertainment, but the antics of jesters simply weren’t enough. Over the course of the first few years, Jestercap evolved from a holiday of observation to a holiday of participation. Today, the holiday is a time where anyone can pull pranks or jokes or japes on companions, on neighbors, and (most typically) on rivals, with the understanding that provided no lasting harm is done, any humiliations inflicted before midnight are to be taken in stride. Of course, come morning the day after, there are inevitably jokes that went too far, and grudges and feuds borne from Jestercap antics have a way of lingering for months to follow.

Download the Jestercap Boon! - (115 KB zip/PDF) This Boon is no longer available as of 11/14/11.

Mike Brock
Pathfinder Society Campaign Coordinator

Golarion Day: The Shoanti Shaman

Thursday, June 16, 2011

So sometimes, we're so eager to get new player options into print we kind of get ahead of ourselves and stumble over our own feet in our haste. This happened, alas, with the just-released Pathfinder Companion: Humans of Golarion, in which we present something called "totem domains" for the Shoanti but then forgot to quantify exactly how anyone can get access to these domains! Oops!

There are seven totem domains in all—one each for the seven Shoanti quahs (clans). Each quah's totem actually consists of several different related animals or objects. For example, the Lyrune-Quah (the Moon Clan) venerates the following totems: bats, cave bears, field mice, the moon, mountain lions, owls, rainstorms, stars, and wolves. Although clerics and druids who become Shoanti shamans venerate their totem, they do not abandon their actual religion. Instead, these totems are simply assimilated into the traditions of whatever deity (for clerics) or perhaps philosophy (for druids) the character follows. A full list of Shoanti totems, including the domains these totems grant, appears on page 16 of Humans of Golarion.

Shoanti Shaman (Cleric and Druid Archetype)

The Shoanti shaman is a very simple archetype that either clerics or druids can take (with GM permission, you can certainly adjust the archetype a bit so that other classes with access to domains can be a Shoanti shaman, but keep in mind that the Shoanti have a very specific flavor, and something like a Shoanti inquisitor is kind of weird...)—doing so allows the character to gain access to his clan's totem domain. A Shoanti shaman has the following class feature.

Totem Domain: At 1st level (for clerics) or upon gaining a domain as part of Nature Bond at 1st level (for druids—a druid who instead opts to take an animal companion cannot use the Shoanti shaman archetype), pick one of your Shoanti quah's totems. You can use an image of this totem you carry or wield as your divine focus in addition to using the normal divine focus you might utilize (such as a holy symbol). In addition, you add that totem's domain choices to the list of domains you may choose from when picking a domain. If you are a cleric, you must still choose one of your domains from those normally granted by your deity. If you are a druid, your totem domain options replace the standard domain options granted by nature bond.

Illustration by Florian Stitz

James Jacobs
Creative Director

Looking to the Stars

Monday, October 6, 2008

So, after a lengthy and unscheduled delay, it looks like we're getting quite close to finally getting Pathfinder #14 into our warehouse and ready to ship. It's been a bit since we talked about this one, but here's a quick preview of something a lot of our readers are looking forward to—what lies beyond the planet of Golarion!

In Pathfinder #14, we'll be discussing that very topic—what other worlds revolve around Golarion's sun, what sorts of creatures dwell on those worlds, and how they and Golarion's denizens travel back and forth between the planets through the inhospitable gulf of space. Naturally, the map of the solar system attached doesn't show the planets and the distances between them to scale (we'd have to have a giant foldout section to do that, I suspect), but it does show off how many different worlds there are out there. It's a little overwhelming to me, to tell the truth; we've barely scratched the surface of one small part of Golarion, and we're already talking about the other planets! Hopefully Pathfinder #14 satisfies the urge for info about these other planets for a while, though—at least long enough for us to catch our breath and figure out what to do with all these worlds!

James Jacobs
Pathfinder Editor-in-Chief

Sneak Peek: Map of Golarion

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Here is a sneak peek of Golarion, the exciting world of the Pathfinder Adventure Paths and GameMastery Modules. From the frontiers of Varisia to the devil-tainted cities of Cheliax to the frigid Hold of the Mammoth Lords, it will surely draw you in!

Note: This map is not final, and is a work in progress.

Carolyn Mull
Sales & Marketing Assistant

How big is it?

Thursday, October 25, 2007

For some time now, people have been asking us how big Golarion is, and many have had the misconception that Varisia, being our most detailed region so far, comprises the majority of our setting. Nothing could be further from the truth, and to give you an idea of scale, Jason Bulmahn has pulled out the coastal outlines of the two continents that comprise the first Golarion world map (which will appear in the Pathfinder Chronicles Gazetteer) and dropped in our maps of Varisia and Osirion (from J1: Entombed with the Pharaohs). Don't let the rough sketch fool you, though—the map itself is very close to being finished, and you can expect a load of new world-related tidbits on the blog in the weeks to come. Stay tuned!

James Sutter
Assistant Editor, Pathfinder

Time on Golarion

Friday, August 10, 2007

As our messageboards have recently been packed with folks wanting to know more about the day-to-day business of Golarion, the following is a brief introduction to the dating and timing conventions of our world. Rest assured that you'll be able to find out much more—such as timelines, country overviews, histories, and the rest—in the forthcoming Pathfinder Chronicles Gazetteer.

Time travels on Golarion much as it does here on our own Earth. Sixty seconds form a minute, sixty minutes create an hour, and twenty-four hours make a day. The people of Golarion measure time much like we do as well, with seven days to a week and twelve 30-day months to a year. Years are marked since the founding of the last great empire, that of Aroden, the Last Man. Although the empire has collapsed, its calendar remains in use to this day. At the start of the campaign, the date is 4707 AR (Absalom Reckoning).

Days of the Week

The days of the week are as follows. Each day has a general purpose that most people in the Inner Sea region follow.

Day	General Purpose
Moonday	Work, religion [night]
Toilday	Work
Wealday	Work
Oathday	Work, pacts signed, oaths sworn
Fireday	Work
Starday	Work
Sunday	Rest, religion

Months

The months in Golarion correspond to our own, with each new year starting shortly after the solstice. You'll notice that the name of each month is etymologically tied to a specific god—residents of Golarion see the gods reflected in the changing of the seasons, and their names for the months reflect this. (Gozreh's month, for instance, is a time of budding and new life, while Zon-Kuthon's is seen as the death of the old year.) Holidays in a given month are generally tied to their patron deity. In order, the months are:

Abadius (January)
Calistril (February)
Pharast (March)
Gozran (April)
Desnus (May)
Sarenith (June)
Erastus (July)
Arodus (August)
Rova (September)
Lamashan (October)
Neth (November)
Kuthona (December)

Mike McArtor
Associate Editor, GameMastery

What's the Difference?

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

One question we've run into repeatedly as we introduce the new world in which both Pathfinder and the GameMastery Modules will be set is, "What makes your campaign setting different?" In order to answer that, we've asked each member of the editorial design team—collectively known as "The Pit"—what they think sets our world apart.

Erik Mona (Publisher)

"The GameMastery world will contain a wider mixture of influences that most available on the market, making it easier to find a home for the type of adventures you and your friends are interested in playing. The world doesn't come burdened with a single overarching plot or expectation of play style, but rather allows for a wide variety of campaigns. Do you feel like exploring a savage frontier? The Lands of the Linnorm Kings or the Hold of the Mammoth Lords provide perfect backdrops. Players who enjoy urban roleplaying and intrigue will be drawn to the political world of Absalom or the treacherous courts of devil-tainted Cheliax. Players interested in science fantasy will find plenty to like in the barbarian nation of Numeria, greatest of the River Kingdoms, where a powerful sovereign and his council of witches rule from the ancient ruins of a mighty vessel fallen from space. They might even get a chance to explore the green and red worlds in the heavens above. The code-phrase we've been using for development of the world beyond Varisia (and including it) is "Planet of Adventure," because it is a place meant to accommodate great campaigns. We're hoping one of them will be yours."

James Jacobs (Editor-in-Chief, Pathfinder)

"I think that the big thing for our campaign setting is the fact that, unlike most other settings, we aren't kicking things off with a line of setting books that detail regions, religions, cities, and histories of the world. We don't want to drown our readers in canon. Rather, we'll be developing our world primarily through adventures written by the best writers we can find. Each adventure in Pathfinder or the GameMastery line can serve double-duty, because once you've run the adventure, there'll remain parts in there that you can use to expand your own campaign world, be it details of a city, a new monster, a haunted forest, a new religion, or whatever. Sooner or later we'll certainly have enough material to cull from the adventures that we'll be able to produce a setting book or something like that, but it won't have been designed in a vacuum. Everything in our campaign world will evolve out of things that are already adventures, rather than evolve from ideas that then have to be turned into adventures.

"Oh, and demon lords and archdevils and celestial paragons and archangels can grant spells to their cultists. That's pretty cool too."

Jason Bulmahn (GameMastery Brand Manager)

"One of our primary goals is to give a campaign setting that uses all of the advantages of the modern rules set while still maintaining a sort of "classic" middle-fantasy feel. We want our world to be one that has a place for almost any sort of play style without flooding GMs and players with a bunch of assumed baselines that make some play-styles impossible or difficult to run. If you want to use our setting to run an Egyptian-styled adventure, you can certainly do that, but it doesn't preclude a swashbuckling game, a feudal knights adventure, a lich hunt, or an urban political game. The trick is balancing these themes and flavors that everyone is familiar with, while still giving it a fresh take that fires up the imagination and allows for GMs to give it their own personal flair. After all, we want this to be your campaign too.

"And, of course, we got ninjas."

James Sutter (Assistant Editor, Pathfinder)

"My biggest problem with most campaign settings is the canon. While as a writer I understand well the joy of having your ideas set in stone, of watching people take what you've written and hold it up as The Way It Is, with gaming I find that it's ultimately a decadent and self-indulgent pleasure, and a little goes a long, long way.

"When I first started working at Dungeon, canon and I went head-to-head on a daily basis. It seemed like every time I had an idea I thought was interesting, someone smiled sympathetically and said, "Yeah, but you can't do that because..." As a GM, who wants to be told "no" all the time?

"That's what makes our new setting so exciting to me. Sure, any new setting will have less baggage than one that's been around for years, but throughout the design process of this world, we've tried to always keep that "less is more" mentality in mind. This is our world, but it's also the players' world, and every time you tell a GM or player, "You can't do that," you've just killed a fun session. It's too easy for a setting to reach a point where, through years of development and source material, it's been detailed down to the last commoner, with no room left to invent, explore, and innovate. Either that, or the broad, sweeping changes you've made to distinguish your setting ("All elves in our setting are XXX!") end up alienating portions of your audience. The rallying cry at our development meetings has been, "Never say never." We've all put in a lot of work to make this setting as interesting as possible, and there will undoubtedly be official supplements someday to support the adventures which are the setting's driving force, but know that as we go along, we realize that this isn't just our sandbox—it's the sandbox of everyone who does us the honor of playing in it. And with that honor comes a certain responsibility."

Jeremy Walker (Assistant Editor, GameMastery)

"Often, a campaign setting is defined not so much by what elements it includes, but instead by what it precludes. Specific themes, elements, and quirks help players and GMs connect with the setting, but oftentimes the very things that first attract gamers become the things that drive them away, as, frustrated by the setting's inability to adapt, they move on to the next unique setting, only to repeat the process down the road when that setting's fresh ideas become stale.

"One might think, then, that the solution is to provide a setting as generic as possible, so that any story can be dropped in just about anywhere. And yet people are looking for more in a campaign setting than a blank sheet of canvas. They want a world in which to tell their own stories in their own way, but they also want a living world that seems real. In this way, a campaign setting is like a matte painting on a movie set. A richly detailed backdrop that, while it exists independently of the characters in the movie, gives their actions context and meaning beyond their individual stories. To create a purely generic world is like shooting a movie in front of a black and white painting—it is immediately, and obviously, unreal.

"So how to provide a rich and detailed world without running the risk of our conventions and ideas becoming stale? Our solution is to provide a campaign setting that includes many distinct areas, each containing their own themes, characters, stories, and ideas. Each area of our world is almost a mini-setting all to itself. Vibrant and lifelike, ready for any story you might wish to tell. And when you tire of a particular style of gaming, why there is always something new waiting over that mountain, up that river, or across that sea."

Mike McArtor (Associate Editor, GameMastery)

"1. Interaction: One of the things that sets Paizo apart is our willingness to listen to those who invest in our creation. Spend some time on the messageboards and I think you'll discover pretty quickly that we interact with our readers, and those interactions are never one-way. We're not going to create the setting through democracy, but when the masses speak, we tend to listen.

"2. Inclusiveness: The newest edition of The World's Most Popular Fantasy Roleplaying Game (TWMPFRPG for short) is all about showing you what you can do, not telling you what you can't. In that spirit, our setting is going to allow for whatever you want to include in your campaign. Everything does—or at least can—exist in our setting.

"3. Variety: It's the spice of life. It's also what happens when you put the seven of us in a room, add caffeine, and shake. Then open the floodgates to guys like Baur and Logue and man oh man, have you got something! If you like dinosaurs and Cthulhu, talk to Jacobs over there. If you like your games a little more whimsical, hey man, I've got your back. From the deepest pits of depravity to the most ludicrous non-sequiturs, you'll find it somewhere in this place.

"4. History: We have the advantage of looking back on three decades of what has come before to see what worked. (And of even greater importance: what didn't.) We're building off the initial groundwork of titans—Gygax, Kuntz, Greenwood, and Grubb, for starters. The seven of us are keenly aware of those who came before, and we want to ensure they (and more importantly, YOU) approve of our creation."

Wesley Schneider (Associate Editor, Pathfinder)

"We're only letting the coolest players and GMs use our world. Rabid, endlessly yodeling goblin warchanters will infest the homes of those found unworthy."