Finally An End To All Those Paladin Threads...

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Illustration by Bryan Sola

Pathfinder Player Companion: Champions of Purity is on its way to stores and subscribers soon, and I thought I'd take this opportunity to point out some of my favorite parts of this book. While it has all the delightful crunch readers have come to expect in the Player Companion line (including new feats, magic items, spells, bardic masterpieces, subdomains, inquisitions, and a whole ton more I don't want to give away), the most exciting part about this volume for me is the careful and thought-out discussions regarding alignment and playing good characters. Some of the most interesting matters considered in this book include:

• Explorations of the methodologies, advantages, and challenges of each good alignment. Examples of philosophies followed by characters of various good alignments ensure that no two chaotic good characters are the same, while suggestions on how to play alongside characters of opposing or conflicting alignments make certain your group doesn't fall apart just because the paladin caught the rogue stealing something.
• Thoughts on putting good characters in bad situations and tips on how to handle moral quandaries as they apply to rules for characters such as paladins as well as for purely roleplaying purposes.
• A discussion of redemption and how this might play into capturing villains both mortal and otherworldly. While that misled farmer stealing his neighbor's sheep might be redeemable, how does one go about handling a tiefling foe or even a crib full of goblin babies? Examples of possible penances and other ways characters might go about achieving atonement abound.

If you're tired of playing the same old lawful good holy knight or even just want to put a new spin on your chaotic good barbarian, Champions of Purity is an absolute don't-miss. Coming soon!

Patrick Renie
Developer

You Are Not Forgotten!

Monday, April 8, 2013

We here at Paizo HQ are deep in the throes of birthing a number of incredible products for release at Gen Con in August, and that means it's an all-hands-on-deck scenario. John and I are being called upon to assist with development and editing of products outside the Pathfinder Society Scenario line, and that means less time to devote to Pathfinder Society blogs on Mondays. So that you aren't left in the lurch, however, here are a few pieces of art from some of this month's Pathfinder releases, set to start going out to subscribers in the next week or so. Some of these images may even be useful for GMs who like visual aids for their Pathfinder Society games, though I won't give any more info than that!

Illustrations by Filip Burburan, Jason Rainville, and Xia Taptara

Mike's back in the office later this week after almost a month of conventions and international business trips, and from what I understand, he's got a few good blogs in the works. Be sure to check back next week and see what he has to report!

Mark Moreland
Developer

Pathfinder Preview!

Thursday, March 21, 2013

It's Savannah again. The prodigal intern from last summer returns... for Spring Break anyhow. It's been an accidental intern reunion here at Paizo, as my predecessor Jerome is helping out in the warehouse this week. Personally, I think I've got the better end of the deal, since I get to tell you all about some of our upcoming products and how exciting they're looking. So, from the depths of the Editorial Pit and my appropriated computer comes an intern's-eye view (when that view isn't "hiding on pallets from the cave raptors.")

Do you want the power to challenge the gods themselves? Then Mythic Adventures is the book for you! This is the perfect resource to help you take our game up a notch, and give your characters the power to challenge the gods themselves. Mythic Adventures allows you to take up new mythic magic items, artifacts, and legendary items, utilize news feats and spells, and walk one of six mythic paths. However, with mythic heroes also come mythic foes, and this book has over 40 of them, including mythic versions of the minotaur and the medusa!

Next up is the Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Demons Revisited. This book showcases some of Pathfinder's most vicious and well-known demons and provides in-depth information, such as what sins they arise from. The balor, the succubus, and the vrock are among the demons mentioned here, but Demons Revisited doesn't stop there! There are a list of named demons, some of them from previous Pathfinder products, and some of them brand new, but each of them unique in their own horrendously cruel ways. This can help to add some spice to the conjurations of your villains (or your PCs) and nothing says "personal" quite like a named summons. As an added bonus, this book ties in with the upcoming Wrath of the Righteous Adventure Path!

Speaking of Wrath of the Righteous, The Worldwound Incursion is also up for August. One of the most exciting aspects of this Adventure Path is that it is the first to utilize the rules of Mythic Adventures, making it a truly epic adventure! On top of that, there will be six demon lords featured in Wrath of the Righteous, and the first of them will be in The Worldwound Incursion's bestiary.

Continuing our demonic theme is Pathfinder Player Companion: Demon Hunter's Handbook. This book explains exactly how to eradicate or control demonkind through might or magic. To help, there are all sorts of archetypes, feats, spells, and magic items to give you just what you need to take care of the vilest of demons and purge them from the land (or take their power for yourself...). Don't travel to the Abyss without one!

For the fans of steampunk out there comes Wardens of the Reborn Forge by Paizo's own Patrick Renie. This module takes place in the Grand Duchy of Alkenstar, which has withstood the ravages of the Mana Wastes thanks to the amazing inventions of its citizenry. When the clockwork guardians start attacking the townspeople, though, the power balance of the city is thrown into disarray. Can our heroes discover the cause behind these attacks and save Alkenstar from itself?

In case you were wondering about what you were going play some of these awesome adventures on, you can look no further than the Pathfinder Map Pack: Evil Ruins for all of your creepy, dungeon-crawling needs! From spider haunts to profane altars to overflowing ossuaries, this map pack brings all the horror and dark ambiance of unhallowed ruins to your game.

If frightening ruins aren't what your game calls for, then the Flip-Mat: Basic Terrain Multi-Pack might be just what you need. Its full-color textures include grassland, stone floor, street, and water. It also folds up to be travel sized, making it great for the GM on the go.

If you haven't had enough of demons yet, then I'd suggest that you check out the new Pathfinder Tales novel from fan-favorite (and intern-favorite) author Dave Gross: King of Chaos. This is another adventure featuring Count Varian Jeggare and his wisecracking hellspawn bodyguard, Radovan. This time they find themselves mixed up in the battle at the Worldwound as the demons break free of the wardstones. In addition to being an excellent book with interesting characters, King of Chaos is also a great resource for those who are running or playing Wrath of the Righteous.

To round out our Worldwound-themed August comes a new set of Pathfinder Item Cards. These cards represent the trove of treasure that characters can amass, as well as the medals that heroes can earn in their service against the demon hordes and the legendary artifacts that they will need to defeat the Abyssal armies.

From Paizo's collaboration with Lone Shark Games comes an entirely new breed of game: The Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Rise of the Runelords Base Set. This is a cooperative card game for one to four players. Choose a class and select your cards to create a unique character to play through your first adventure, the Burnt Offerings Adventure Deck. If you want even more card game goodness, then check out the Rise of the Runelords Character Add-On Deck, which adds on 110 cards worth of new classes (including druid, monk, paladin, and my favorite, barbarian), new items, and enough cards to expand to five or six players.

All right, well that's a wrap. Let's hope that writing this was a good enough offering that I don't get thrown to the cave raptors. Hope you enjoy all the new products!

Savannah Broadway
Editorial Intern

Five Awesome Things about the Dungeoneer's Handbook

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Get out of the tavern and into the treasure with Pathfinder Player Companion: Dungeoneer's Handbook! Since this book is just over the horizon, I thought I'd treat you all with a sneak preview of what I think are just a couple of the coolest parts about this dungeon-delving must-have.

1. Dungeon Guides! Found yourself more lost than a bat in an area of silence? Never fear with dungeon guides! Each of these tomes is keyed to a specific adventure location and can help dungeon delvers figure out what kinds of dangers might lurk around the next corner. Bibliophilic dungeoneers should be wary however, for the veracity of these volumes is variable, and those who rely too frequently on their supposedly trusty tour book might discover only too late the flights of fancy implicit in these over-the-top tomes!
2. New Alchemical Items! With such items as glowing gel-tubes, pebbles that expand into boulders with water, and smoke pellets that cover invisible creatures with sticky black resin, the aspiring trickster need look no further than the cornucopia of alchemical items unveiled in this volume. Oh, and did we mention new alchemist discoveries for those bomb-slinging partisans of all things potable?
3. Essential Tips and Tricks! Discover solutions to common dungeoneering quandaries with sections on monsters, traps, and treasure. Whether your task involves outsmarting the minotaur guard, throwing an unwitting foe into a suspected swinging blade trap, or figuring out how to haul all that booty back to town, Dungeoneer's Handbook will have you covered with clever advice, helpful suggestions, and brand new feats!
4. New Hirelings! Who's taking care of your horses outside while you're excavating that kobold-infested mineshaft, anyway? Wonder no more with handy new hirelings—NPCs that specialize in making your dungeoneering career a lucrative one while you concentrate on the action.
5. Archetypes, Spells, and More! With new magic items, spells, archetypes, feats, traits, equipment, and more, this book will leave every crypt delver and tomb raider fully prepared for their next dungeon visit!

Illustrations by Ben Wootten

Pathfinder Player Companion: Dungeoneer's Handbook comes out this month, so don't wait for the gelatinous cube to swallow your character before it's too late—order your copy now!

Patrick Renie
Developer

Animal Archive Preview

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Since we revamped our Player Companion line last August, we've been able to play with a lot of different ideas and themes in coming up with overarching concepts for the latest Player Companions. Coming up is one of our most exciting new releases in this line, a content-packed volume called Animal Archive, available starting on the 20th of February. This Player Companion is chocked full of awesome new tips, tricks, items, archetypes, spells, and feats for you and your bestial buddy. Oh, and did I mention there'd be a ton of new animal companions and familiars too?

While of course I could never betray the llama animal companion as my favorite new addition to the Pathfinder stables, I think the platypus familiar is particularly well suited for a preview blog. I'm not sure if Seoni shares my sentiment, though...

Illustration by Roberto Pitturru

Platypus CR 1/6

XP 65
N Tiny animal
Init +3; Senses electrolocation 30 ft. (while underwater); Perception +1 (+5 while underwater)

Defense

AC 14, touch 14, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +2 size)
hp 3 (1d8–1)
Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +1

Offense

Speed 10 ft., swim 40 ft.
Melee spur +4 (1d3–4 plus poison)
Space 2-1/2 ft.; Reach 0 ft.

Statistics

Str 2, Dex 14, Con 8, Int 2, Wis 13, Cha 11
Base Atk +0; CMB +0; CMD 6 (10 vs. trip)
Feats Weapon Finesse
Skills Swim +15; Racial Modifiers +4 Perception while underwater

Ecology

Environment temperate or tropical rivers
Organization solitary
Treasure none

Special Abilities

Electrolocation (Ex) While underwater, platypuses can sense the tiny electrical currents that trigger muscle movement. This allows them to locate living prey and to distinguish it from inanimate objects. Treat electrolocation as blindsight 30 feet, but platypuses can sense only living creatures, and it functions only underwater.
Poison (Ex) Spur—injury; save Fort DC 9; frequency 1/round for 4 rounds; effect 1 nonlethal damage; cure 1 save.
Semiaquatic (Ex) Platypuses can hold their breath underwater for up to 5 minutes before they must start attempting Constitution checks to avoid suffocation.

This little guy is just one of the four new familiars you'll find in Animal Archive, and just one of eight brand-new animals total! In addition to these all-new beasties and a host of new rules options, you'll find expanded information and rules on some of Golarion's most famous endemic creatures, including the razorcrow, ether frog, firefoot fennec, and more!

So dust off the old feedbag and clean out your kennel, because Pathfinder Player Companion: Animal Archive hits shelves later this month!

Patrick Renie
Developer

Blood of the Night: Sate Your Hunger, Part 2

Saturday, December 22, 2012

This past Thursday we gave you a glimpse into the brand-new Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Nightand offered up some pointers on playing your favorite bloodsucker. Now it's time for dhampirs and the dauntless vampire hunters.

So You're Playing a Dhampir...

Half-breed vampires, the dhampir first appeared in Bestiary 2 and were further embraced in the Advanced Race Guide (page 96, which begins 6 pages of new traits, archetypes, magic items, and more). Blood of the Night expands on those options, bringing these tainted souls fully into the Pathfinder campaign setting. If your GM is allowing dhampirs in her game, its time to decide if playing one of these accursed souls is right for you.

Illustrations by Diana Martinez

1. Begin with the Basics: Start on the inside front cover to get a run down on what it means to be a dhampir. All of the racial benefits and abilities of this mysterious breed appear right up front. Check these out and see if it seems like a dhampir character is right for you.
2. Know Your Ancestors: Dhampirs aren't their own full-fledged race, they're half-breeds. Just as elven culture impacts half-elves and orc society shapes half-orcs, dhampir characters stand to be shaped by their parentage just as much as any of these other races. With that in mind, players with dhampir characters should check out the overview of the vampiric bloodlines of the Inner Sea on the inside cover, and there more detailed write-ups on pages 6 to 12. This might also be a good time to decide your general feelings about full-blooded vampires, as dhampirs have a reputation for being among the greatest vampire hunters.
3. Know Yourself: The details of life as a vampire, secrets of this rare race, and suggestions for creating dhampir characters are presented on page 18 and 19. Now that you've chosen to be a dhampir, learn what that means and let that help shape the character you're planning on making. Additionally, now that you know a thing or two about your ancestry, decide whether or not you want to further connect yourself to Golarion's vampire bloodlines by selecting one of four variant dhampir racial options—the jiang-shi-born ru-shi, the moroi-born svetochr, the nosferatu-born ancient-born, or the vetala-born ajibachana.
4. Create Your Character: Now that you know what a dhampir is and how your vampiric heritage has affected you, it's time to make your character. Numerous character options can be found throughout the book in the form of new feats (28 and 29) and traits for dhampirs (19, 20, 21). If you've chosen to be an enemy of vampire kind, the various roles for vampire hunters on pages 26 and 27, as well as several of the spells and magic items on pages 30 and 31, can also help set your character's path.
5. Add Campaign Details: Although rare in the extreme, dhampirs can be found in many places throughout the Inner Sea Region. Learn about where your dhampir and the vampires of your bloodline fit into the Pathfinder campaign setting on pages 24 and 25. Additionally, if you're looking for vampires to hunt, check out the inside back cover for an overview of places in the Inner Sea Region (below, and beyond) in need of vampire hunters.
6. Consider Optional Rules: Even though many of the options in Blood of the Night are themed for vampires, dhampirs straddle the line between the worlds of the living and the dead. A dhampir character interested in highlighting his vampiric urges might work with the GM to employ the rules for hunger on page 22. Characters with a strong tie to a particular vampire bloodline might also find traits suggested for vampires that work well for them, and players should ask their GM if she'll permit them. Dhampirs are exceptionally rare individuals and norms for this race are few, so work with your GM to create the half-vampire hero or antihero of your darkest dreams.

Illustration by
Jorge Fares

So You're Not Playing a Bloodsucker...

Vampire hunters face a daunting, immortal foe, but fortunately Blood of the Night can help them in their quest to beat back the creatures of the night. Aside from many of the secrets and best-known details of Golarion's various vampire breeds, the Hunting Vampires section (page 26 and 26) presents four distinct ways to make a variety of vampire hunters, from spell-slinging arcane slayers; undead-killing bards, monks, and rogues; divine-focused hunters; and classic martial slayers. These builds direct players toward some of the strongest vampire-hunting options in the Pathfinder RPG, including more than a few options you might have never guessed work great against the undead. To really get the edge on the servants of darkness, Blood of the Night also presents a host of new feats designed specifically for vampire hunters (page 28), new spells (page 30), new magic items (page 31), and, of course, a hit list of lands in the Inner Sea where a vampire hunter can ply her trade. You don't just need to be playing the Carrion Crown Adventure Path to play a vampire hunter anymore—let Blood of the Night be your guide to hunting Golarion's deadliest hunters wherever your campaign and character concepts take you.

F. Wesley Schneider
Editor-in-Chief

Blood of the Night: Sate Your Hunger, Part 1

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Something besides the Krampus stalks the snowy, holiday streets this year. Just in time for the longest nights of the year comes Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Night, a guide to playing vampires, dhampirs, and vampire hunters. Always wanted to play a character with a true bloodlust? Blood of the Night gives you a variety of gory options, from playing fantastically powerful actual vampires (and detailing what that means for a game) to slipping in more subtle bloodsuckers like dhampirs. But how do you know what type of bloodsucker is best for you and your game? Blood of the Night can help you answer that question.

Start with the For Your Character section

The first section of every Player Companion is the For Your Character spread, two pages dedicated to answering your questions, highlighting focus classes and topics, and helping you find the perfect options for you character. This is the place to start, particularly with the Questions to Ask Your GM section.

The biggest question here: Will we be allowed to play any monstrous characters in this campaign, including vampires?

Remember, the GM is the arbiter of what works in her game and what doesn’t, so if you want to play a character tainted by vampirism, talk to her and find out what works in her game. If the answer’s no vampires (or other powerful races), that’s still okay! There are still plenty of ways to play a bloodsucker. In fact, that’s what dhampirs were made for. See if your GM is okay with you playing one of these creatures, which are more evenly matched to the core races. If the answer to the vampire question is yes, though, that’s great too, and opens the door for not just significant options, but also new ways to play and things to consider regarding your character.

So You’re Playing a Vampire...

Illustration by Denman Rooke

If your GM is allowing vampires in her game, the first thing to decide is what type of vampire is right for you.

1. Choose Your Bloodline: Start on the inside front cover and get an overview of the four major types of vampires that haunt the Inner Sea Region. Choose which one seems most appealing to you. Each of these sections has tons of details on what distinguishes these undead hunters, along with how they come into being, their desires, secrets, roles, racial traits, and more.
• Want to know more about the mystical jiang-shi? Check them out on page 6.
• Want to play to tradition with the Dracula-like moroi? Flip to page 8.
• Looking for something more ancient and mysterious? Consider the nosferatu on page 10.
• Ready for the exotic, body-possessing vetala? Head to page 12.
  
  
2. Create Your Character: Once you’ve selected the type of vampire you want to play, you’ll want to follow a few steps.
• Build your character as normal, probably starting as a 1st-level core race, but talk to your GM about specifics.
• Apply the relevant vampire template (jiang-shi, Bestiary 3; moroi, Bestiary 1 [normal vampires]; nosferatu, Pathfinder Adventure Path #8; vetala, Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Bestiary).
• Refine your powers: From traits specific to each vampire breed (pages, 7, 9, 11, 13) to specialized feats (pages 16, 17, 28, 29), no two vampires ever need be alike.
  
  
3. Consider Hunger: Page 22 presents a new subsystem for hunger, whether it be the bloodlust of vampires, the carrion hunger of ghouls, the life envy of ghosts, or otherwise. Hunger brings the endless desires of the damned to the forefront of a game as never before, with penalties for fasting but also new benefits for the well fed.
   
   
4. Add Campaign Details: The Inner Sea Region is full of places vampires thrive, famous vampires you might somehow be tied to, and religions willing to help you indulge your desires. Learn about them on pages 24 and 25.
   
   
5. Learn How to Play Well with Others: Now that you’ve decided to play a sinister, lonely creature of the night, you’re likely headed into a game about cooperation and heroics. Pages 14 and 15 presents a primer on what it means to play a vampire in a Pathfinder campaign, with suggestions on handling alignment, how you might interact with other players, and things both you and the GM should keep in mind throughout the campaign to make sure that not just you, but all the players, have many unforgettable adventures.
   
   
6. Be Flexible: The base assumptions of the Pathfinder RPG were obviously not designed to support vampiric characters, but with the tools presented in Blood of the Night and a willingness to cooperate with your GM and other players, you’ll be set for a Pathfinder experience like no other.

F. Wesley Schneider
Editor-in-Chief

11 Awesome Things About the Refreshed Player Companions

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Readers with subscriptions to the Pathfinder Player Companion line have already started getting a glimpse of Varisia: Birthplace of Legends, with its refreshed format and philosophies. But for everyone still waiting for their hard copies, who haven't checked out the Player Companions in the past, or who just want to see a bit of what all the hubbub is about, here are ten new awesome things you can expect from Player Companions going forward.

Something for YOUR Character! Every Player Companion begins with a new "For Your Character" introduction, enumerating which character classes receive the most focused love, as well as new features great for characters of any class! Regardless of the type of character you're playing, each Player Companion will always have something for you!

Questions to Ask Your GM! You're not playing Pathfinder by yourself. To make the most of the content in every Player Companion, there's a list of questions for players to ask their GMs regarding that month's topic. Player Companion: Knights of the Inner Sea is going to have lots of players excited to don their shining armor, but if your GM is about to take you under the sea, maybe you should put that character concept on hold. Make sure you've got the right character for your campaign with just a few simple questions.

Rules Index! Want to cut right to the chase and find the feats, traits, archetypes, and other rules elements that your character has to have? Flip to the rules index for a comprehensive listing of the crunchiest elements, by type and with associated page number. Stop wadding through pages searching for that lost trait and get back to playing!

Did You Know? Making the Pathfinder RPG has been a weird and wild ride. Learn behind-the-scenes secrets and weird Pathfinder trivia with the quick new "Did you Know?" call-outs.

Almost a Centerfold! Player Companions are some of the only Pathfinder products that lie absolutely flat (there's no gutter between pages for words or art to get lost in). This gives us the opportunity to do jaw-dropping, uninterrupted, two-page art pieces right in the center of every book. In Varisia: Birthplace of Legends, that means a massive player-friendly map of all Varisia (complete with routes and travel times to some of the most exciting locations), but down the road it'll mean month after month of lavish, artistic depictions of regions, topics, and themes central to that month's Player Companion. If you want a lot of information without a lot of words, here's the place to look!

Vistas and Double Truck Art! See the Pathfinder Campaign Setting like never before with huge, double-page-spanning art pieces. Beyond just the huge piece in the center spread, expect to see sweeping views of some of the most exciting lands and epic scenes from across Golarion, with art pieces only the format of Pathfinder Player Companion can provide. Check out just a few of the most awesome vistas from Varisia, Birthplace of Legends and next month's Knights of the Inner Sea, included here!

Illustrations by Ben Wootten

New Players Welcome! Weren't here for Pathfinder Adventure Path #1? Didn't play Hollow's Last Hope? That's just fine, and welcome aboard! Pathfinder Player Companions are designed to be entry points for players who know nothing about the subject of the month, giving you the backstory on existing topics, overviews of regions detailed at length elsewhere, and quick briefs that bring you into the know with gamers who have been playing Pathfinder for years!

The Veteran's Arsenal! Player Companions are your new one-stop arsenal for the best gear, archetypes, spells, magic items, traits, and other character options related to the month's topic. Also, don't worry about just getting rehashes of information presented elsewhere—with every overview you can also expect Player Companions to drill down deeper into details players need to know on some of the richest subjects in the Pathfinder Campaign Setting. Think you knew everything there was to know about Varisia? In Varisia, Birthplace of Legends, you'll learn all about the territories and totems of Shoanti quahs, the most traveled routes of Varisian wanderers, the fastest travel times between major locations, arcane schools from across Varisia, freshly updated Varisian equipment, and much, much more!

What You Need—NOW! We know players don't always have the time to read an entire book's worth of material to make their character—especially when they need that character right away. Player Companions are now built with every two-page spread focused on a single topic, giving you everything you need to know on the subject at a glance, or allowing you to page quickly past material you don't need in search of what you want. These focused sections give players in a rush the opportunity to make the right choices for their characters and learn about the Pathfinder Campaign Setting without having to read dozens of pages.

Roles! Heard about a great idea from the Pathfinder Campaign Setting, but not really sure how to build it? Then you need a role! Roles can be considered builds, templates, or kits that give you suggestions on what rules and roleplaying themes you should consider if you want to play a character related to some of the most exciting cultures and organizations in Golarion—folks like Varisan fortune-tellers, Sczarni toughs, and Sable Company marines (to name just a few from Varisia: Birthplace of Legends). Roles draw on rules and options from across the whole spectrum of Pathfinder RPG products so you don't have to hunt through book after book for the perfect feat or that archetype you know you saw somewhere. Additionally, roles are as much about how you play your character as what stats go into building it, so you'll also find tips on how to roleplay, preferred gear for your character, and even considerations on relationships you might want to share with other members of your party. At the same time, every role is entirely a suggestion—an idea of how we here at Paizo might build a type of character—so if you want to play an exception to the rule, well, being exceptional is what being a PC is all about!

Monthly! Player Companions have gone monthly! Now subscribers can expect a new host of options for their characters and details on the hottest topics in Golarion every single month. (After all, you're a player every month, right?) Get all the backup you need—now twice as often!

Pathfinder Player Companion: Varisia, Birthplace of Legends is available now, so if you've never taken a look at Pathfinder Player Companions before or didn't think they were for your game, now's the perfect time to take another look. We've put a lot into refreshing this series, and I think you're really going to like what you see. Thanks for checking them out, and be sure to tell us what you think!

F. Wesley Schneider
Editor-in-Chief

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

Gen Con Announcement Recap!

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

ENnie Awards: Product of the Year
(for the Advanced Players Guide)

Whew... another Gen Con over and done with! We had a great time at the show, in no small part due to the incredible support of our fans and customers. You all are the BEST!

In a Gen Con filled with highlights, though, for me one of the most incredible moments came about 15 minutes after the Ennie Awards wrapped up, when we went up to the Pathfinder Society Organized Play room to announce to a room of several hundred gamers that we’d won. The uproar of cheers that filled the room when Erik climbed up on his chair and made that announcement was overwhelming. Pictured is one of those many awards—the trophy for Product of the Year (Advanced Player’s Guide) held up with an enormous room of hundreds of Pathfinder Society GMs and players in the background.

We also made a large number of announcements at Gen Con for products coming out in the months ahead. Most of these announcements can be found here and there on paizo.com, but I thought I’d group them all up here in this post so everyone can find out about them at once.

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Coming at the end of the year is Pathfinder Bestiary 3, followed next Spring by the Advanced Race Guide (a big hardcover book that’ll give you new options for ALL of the zero Hit Die races we’ve published to that point, as well as rules for building your own races of any power level), and then next Gen Con with Ultimate Equipment (a hardcover filled to the brim with new toys and magic items for any Pathfinder character).

Pathfinder Adventure Path: At long last, we’ve started the Jade Regent Adventure Path! But once you’re done traveling over the frozen Crown of the World and exploring Tian Xia, be ready next February for some good old-fashioned plundering and mayhem with the pirate-themed Skull & Shackles Adventure Path. And then, next Gen Con, we celebrate five years of Pathfinder and ten years of Paizo by returning to where it all began—the Shattered Star Adventure Path brings it all back to Varisia with a frantic search to be the first to recover and rebuild an ancient Thassilonian artifact—the original Sihedron Symbol—before it’s too late!

Pathfinder Campaign Setting: We sold out of the copies of Inner Sea Magic and Pathfinder Society Field Guide we brought to the convention! Coming in the future in this line is a trip to the north with Lands of the Linnorm Kings, a visit with the daemons and their overlords in Book of the Damned 3: Horsemen of the Apocalypse, our first real excursion into the lands of Tian Xia in the Dragon Empires Gazetteer, and an investigation of ten favorite beasties in Mythological Monsters Revisited. Then, next year, we’ll explore the other planets of Golarion’s solar system in Distant Worlds, look at the big guys in Giants Revisited, look to ancient empires with Lost Kingdoms, explore the pirate and monster infested Isles of the Shackles, and finally take a trip back home with Magnimar: City of Monuments.

Pathfinder Player Companion: After debuting Goblins of Golarion at Gen Con, we’re ready to finish out the three-part exploration of the faiths of the Inner Sea with Faiths of Corruption. Two months later, the Dragon Empires Primer gives players all they need to know to make characters from Tian Xia. And early next year, Pirates of the Inner Sea will finally let you unleash your inner buccaneer!

Pathfinder Modules: We’ll be heading back to Varisia even earlier than Magnimar: City of Monuments and the Shattered Star Adventure Path, though, with Feast of Ravenmoor, a low-level module set in the Varisian hinterlands. Two months later, test your mettle in The Ruby Phoenix Tournament, and then next January find out what our latest RPG Superstar winner, Sam Zeitlin, has in store for you in The Midnight Mirror!

Pathfinder Tales: Dave Gross’s trip into Tian Xia, Master of Devils, launched at Gen Con to great success. Later this year comes Death’s Heretic by Paizo’s own James L. Sutter, followed next year by Hugh Matthews’s Song of the Serpent and Tim Pratt’s City of the Fallen Sky.

Pathfinder Battles: After WizKids releases the initial set of prepainted plastic Pathfinder miniatures of Merisiel, Kyra, Valeros, and Ezren (Pathfinder Beginner Box Heroes, which ties into the upcoming Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Beginner Box), you can look forward first to the 40-miniature set of Heroes and Monsters, to be followed up later next year by the Rise of the Runelords set.

And finally... the announcement that I was the most excited for: a 420-page hardcover compilation of Rise of the Runelords, fully updated to the Pathfinder rules and expanded with new encounters and tons of new artwork, due for release at PaizoCon 5 next June!

James Jacobs
Creative Director

Golarion Day: Where Do the Goblins Live?

Thursday, July 7, 2011

There's a lot of fun information about goblins in the upcoming Pathfinder Player Companion, Goblins of Golarion—things like new character traits, goblin spells and magic, goblin feats, some new subdomains, and lots of fun tidbits about what it is to be a goblin in the first place. One thing I'm particularly delighted we got to do, though, was include a section that talks about all of the significant (and some not-so-significant) goblin tribes of the Inner Sea region. Check out this map that lists their locations. They're all over the place!

Cartography by Rob Lazzaretti

James Jacobs
Creative Director

We Be Goblins—You Get Free Stuff!

Friday, June 17, 2011

Cover Illustration by Tyler Walpole

Tomorrow, retail stores around the globe will open their doors and hand out free RPG materials from some of the game industry's most well-known companies. Why? Well tomorrow is Free RPG Day and once again Paizo is taking part in this great program and has produced We Be Goblins, a most unusual (and fully sanctioned for use in the Pathfinder Society) adventure for 1st-level goblin characters.

In this adventure, the Licktoad goblins of Brinestump Marsh have stumbled upon a great treasure—fireworks! Yet unfortunately for them, the tribe member responsible for the discovery has already been exiled for the abhorrent crime of writing (which every goblin knows steals words from your head). To remedy this situation, the Licktoads' leader, His Mighty Girthness Chief Rendwattle Gutwad, has declared that the greatest heroes of the tribe must venture forth to retrieve the rest of the fireworks from a derelict ship stranded in the marsh. In order to prove themselves as the Licktoads' bravest goblins, the PCs must complete a series of dangerous dares, from swallowing bull slugs and braving the dreaded Earbiter to dancing with Squealy Nord himself. Yet even once they've proven their mettle, the adventure is just beginning. For the ship in question is far from uninhabited, and Vorka the cannibal goblin would like nothing better than a few tasty visitors...

Check out the Free RPG Day website for more information and a link to participating retailers. Here in the Seattle area, Pathfinder Lead Designer Jason Bulmahn will be running a few sessions of We Be Goblins, at his local store—Card Kingdoms out in Ballard. Stop on by, say hi, and then roll some dice!

Hyrum Savage
Marketing and Organized Play Manager

Orcs, Giant Scorpion Robots, and Barbarians: An Interview with Tyler Walpole

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

A couple of weeks ago we interviewed Ed Greenwood, our Guest of Honor at PaizoCon 2011. This time I had the pleasure of interviewing Tyler Walpole, our Artist Guest of Honor this year.

Tyler is one of those artists who just gets it. I don't think he's created a piece I don't love and it's going to be awesome to see him at PaizoCon this year. From orcs battling giant monsters single-handedly, to lone barbarians taking on giant arachnid robots, Tyler's art is dynamic, detailed, and just plain awesome. Tyler's definitely on the list of artists I want to paint murals in every room of my future mansion when I win the lottery.

And he's an illustrating machine, doing work for us (seriously, look how awesome the Master of the Fallen Fortress cover is), IDW on the D&D comic, Hero Games, and a ton of other high-profile companies. We're lucky to have him with us at PaizoCon, and if you're coming out, you should definitely see if you can buy him enough drinks to get a sketch.

And now, on with the interview!

1. A brief bio, where you are from and how you started in the industry?

I am a self-taught illustrator who lives in Des Moines, Iowa. I spent several years trying to break into the comic book industry as a penciler. That ended up being a bit like pounding my head against a brick wall. Lots of offers to do work for free, but no professional (i.e., paid) work. In 2000 I decided to forgo my annual trip to Wizard World Chicago, and instead created a portfolio of black-and-white interior illustrations and went to Gen Con. I talked to every art director I could find on the showroom floor. When I got home, I had an offer to do some work for Palladium Books, and that worked out pretty well, so I kept pursuing more and more game work (and added color into the mix) until I had enough coming in to make the jump to full time. I've managed to stay pretty busy ever since.

2. When did you discover your creative talents?

I've been drawing since I could hold a pencil. I spent a lot of time in grade school being told not to draw on my homework... now drawing is my homework!

3. What inspires you?

I take inspiration from everything. Movies, games, books, walks in the park, all of it! I have a pretty active mind, and almost anything can germinate in there and come out as something useful for my art.

4. How would you describe your style?

Oh man, I have no idea. John Romita, Jr. once described his work as "Deadline Style"... its as much as I can get done by the deadline. Working in a publishing environment has sort of dictated that I also have a "Deadline Style." One of these days I'm going to spend just as long as I please on something. I'll go back to you after that happens. ;)

5. Do you have a favorite story or character?

Let see... I'm pretty satisfied with most of the covers I've done, my favorite is probably the Orcs of Golarion. It's essentially a Conan vs. the Monster illustration... only in this case Conan is an Orc, and he's dual-wielding axes. Sarah pretty much let me do my own thing on that one, in design terms, and I really enjoyed it.

6. Who are your favorite artists, writers, and/or influences?

Well, here again, it could be just about anybody. Some of my favorites include Donato Giancola, Dan Dos Santos, Todd Lockwood, Greg Manchess, Frank Frazetta, James Jean, Phil Hale, Mike Mignola, Kevin Nowlan, Adam Hughes, Bill Willingham, and Jim Butcher.

7. How do you juggle freelance work and life?

I skip out on a lot of sleep. No, seriously, I skip out on a lot of sleep. I love my job, but I'm married and have two sons. I do my best to make it to every family function, school event, and baseball game. But, many nights, once everyone is in bed, I sneak back to the studio to make sure I'm on top of my deadlines, and squeeze in some time to develop my own projects.

8. Describe yourself in 5 words.

Living the dream. So grateful!

9. What's the best thing to happen to you recently?

Besides being Artist Guest of Honor at PaizoCon 2011, you mean? I found a publisher for one of those projects!

10. Any advice for aspiring artists?

Practice your art. All. The. Time. Whatever you decide to do, whatever voice emerges through your art, or writing or music, honor it, and do it the best you can... the business part of it will follow. People are drawn to excellence in many forms, so don't try to be like the other guy. And keep at it!

Hyrum Savage
Marketing and Organized Play Manager

Illustration by Sara Forlenza. Wallpaper design by Crystal Frasier. Widescreen version here.

Paizo Is Divine

Friday, February 18, 2011

It's been a divine week here at Paizo. On Wednesday we talked a little about Faiths of Purity, a book that discusses in depth the good-aligned gods and the role of religion and faith on Golarion. In that post we spoiled the code that paladins of Shelyn live by, which you can read about by clicking here.

Yesterday, James Jacobs gave us the subdomains for all of the deities mentioned by name in The Inner Sea World Guide that didn't in turn get a write-up in the Advanced Player's Guide That post built on the one from the week before, where he gave us Pharasma-friendly versions of the Death domain and the attached Souls subdomain. He also gave us the Dark Tapestry, Stars, Dragon, and Saurian subdomains, which fall under the Void and Scalykind domains, both of which can be found in The Inner Sea World Guide.

All of that is a roundabout way of presenting this week's wallpaper, a great piece depicting a paladin of Shelyn. Enjoy!

Hyrum Savage
Marketing and Organized Play Manager

You Gotta Have Faith!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

In the next month or so the next book in our Pathfinder Player Companion line will be released. Faiths of Purity isn't a book about the gods. It's not even just about their clerics. It's really a book about the vast masses of the faithful, the worshipers of the gods of absolute good and their place on Golarion. It's about the living religion, and how that religion ties into the everyday lives of its followers. More importantly, it outlines the role of adventurers in the faith, and why an adventurer might choose a particular god—not merely because the god's alignment matches, or because the best spells come from his domains, but because your philosophies match. Most importantly, it's about how your story can encompass faith, and how a myriad of different heroic characters can battle evil and live in the light of the gods.

This is an awesome book that focuses on the seven major good-aligned gods, provides an outline of the god in question, and summarizes the deity's domains and interests, and why that god might be a good fit for your character. In addition to new feats, spells, and write-ups on different organizations officially sanctioned by the various churches, Faiths of Purity also discusses the various codes paladins of the different good gods live by. As a teaser, here's the code that paladins of Shelyn (yes, she has paladins) follow:

Illustration by Sara Forlenza

Paladins of Shelyn are peaceable promoters of art and beauty. They see the ugliness in evil, even when cloaked in the form of beauty, and their job is to prevent the weak and foolish from being seduced by false promises. Their tenets include:

• I am peaceful. I come first with a rose. I act to prevent conflict before it blossoms.
• I never strike first, unless it is the only way to protect the innocent.
• I accept surrender if my opponent can be redeemed—and I never assume that they cannot be. All things that live love beauty, and I will show beauty's answer to them.
• I will never destroy a work of art, nor allow one to come to harm unless greater art arises from its loss. I will only sacrifice art if doing so allows me to save a life, for untold beauty can arise from an awakened soul.
• I see beauty in others. As a rough stone hides a diamond, a drab face may hide the heart of a saint.
• I lead by example, not with my blade. Where my blade passes, a life is cut short, and the world's potential for beauty is lessened.
• I live my life as art. I will choose an art and perfect it. When I have mastered it, I will choose another. The works I leave behind make life richer for those who follow.

Hyrum Savage
Marketing and Organized Play Manager

We Be Goblins, You Be Food!

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

One of the hardest things about working at Paizo is not talking about the awesome products that are being worked on but haven't been announced yet. Especially when you're the marketing guy and it's your job to tell people about the awesome products that we're working on. This year's Free RPG Day release, We Be Goblins! is a perfect example of this; it's been in the works for months but I haven't been able to say anything until now.

Cover Illustration by Tyler Walpole

We Be Goblins! is an adventure by Richard Pett for 1st-level characters in which you get to play a horde of malicious and murderous goblins that have stumbled upon one of the greatest treasures in goblindom—fireworks! Unfortunately, the tribe member responsible for the discovery has already been exiled for the abhorrent crime of writing (which every goblin knows steals words from your head). To remedy this situation, His Mighty Girthness Chief Rendwattle Gutwad has declared that the greatest heroes of the tribe must venture forth to retrieve the rest of the fireworks from a derelict ship stranded in the marsh outside Sandpoint in order to prove yourselves as the Licktoads' bravest goblins. And yet even once you've proven your mettle, the adventure is just beginning—for the ship in question is far from uninhabited, and Vorka the cannibal goblin would like nothing better than a few tasty visitors...

We Be Goblins! is a complementary adventure to August's Pathfinder Player Companion: Goblins of Golarion (which I also just announced right there—sneaky, eh?) and an optional prequel to Pathfinder Adventure Path's upcoming Jade Regent Adventure Path. This special 16-page Pathfinder Module will initially be made available as Paizo's contribution to Free RPG Day on Saturday, June 18. Print editions will be available for sale exclusively on paizo.com beginning the following Monday, and a FREE PDF will also be released that day.

Hyrum Savage
Marketing and Organized Play Manager

Give the Gift of Gaming

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Last night marked the first night of Hanukkah, and today is the seventh day of the traditional holiday shopping season. Christmas carols have invaded my car radio on the drive to and from work, and the flood of wishlists from friends and family have my inboxes overflowing. But this past weekend, I saw some of the spirit of the season exhibited in our own community and wanted to remind everyone of the tools paizo.com offers to help you show your appreciation for your online friends!

This weekend, one of our generous Pathfinder Society members gave the gift of several scenarios to a fellow board member so that she could review them. Gifting products (either downloads or physical merchandise) was a new feature introduced to paizo.com around this time last year, but anyone can do it! When looking at your shopping cart, before proceeding to checkout, be sure to click the "show gift options during checkout" button to gain the ability to give the contents of the order as a gift to a fellow Paizo customer, either anonymously or with a message.

I know that I, for one, love wishlists, and used to fill my Amazon wishlist up throughout the year to send to family and friends around the holidays and my birthday so they could see alternatives to getting me socks, calling cards, and scratch-off lottery tickets. Paizo offers the same thing, and whether you use one to list products to buy yourself in the future or to list for others, wishlists are a great way to organize your desired products. When someone (either a relative you direct to the site or a random friend from the messageboards) orders something for you from your wishlist, they'll be able to send it directly to the address you specify and it will be removed from the list so you don't get duplicated items. Start your own wishlist by going to the "My Wishlists" tab at the top right of any page on the site. Who knows who out there on the boards wants to share the holiday spirit with you.

And because I'm feeling extra generous today, here's some new art from the forthcoming Pathfinder Player Companion: Halflings of Golarion by Mike Sass!

Illustration by Mike Sass

Mark Moreland
Developer

Illustration by Alex Aparin

Short and Sweet?

Tuesday, October 19th, 2010

With Halflings of Golarion headed off to the printer, now seems like the perfect time to show off Alex Aparin’s awesome cover!

F. Wesley Schneider
Managing Editor

Into the Inner Sea?

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Off to the printer goes Pathfinder Player Companion: Inner Sea Primer, our new guide to what's what and where's where for characters in the Pathfinder campaign setting. Aside from being filled with the baseline, "what your character knows" details of Avistan and Garund, it's also our new go-to book for traits from around the Inner Sea, with each column-length country write-up including two new options for natives of that region. As a bit of a preview, here's a new trait for Sargava to help all you Serpent Skull players soon to be in need of replacement characters. (What can I say? The Mwangi's a killer.) Also, take a peek at more of Carolina Eade's incredible art: a Chelish infernal binder—just one of three new Golarion magic archetypes included in the guide. Enjoy!

Illustration by Carolina Eade

Jungle Guide (Regional): You've made your living outfitting and guiding expeditions deep into the Mwangi interior in search of ancient ruins and lost cities. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Handle Animal checks, and a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks in jungle terrain. One of these skills is a class skill for you.

Wes Schneider
Managing Editor

Around the Office in 80 Seconds!

Friday, September 10, 2010

Good morning, and welcome to S.M. Tours. Today we are offering a "virtual" tour of the elusive Paizo Publishing offices. Here to greet us as we open the front door is the ever-cheerful Customer Service Manager Cosmo! While tempting, we recommend for your safety that you do not stare directly at the moustache, as it has been known to attack on occasion.

On your left are the offices of our technical team. If we could see through the gloom in the first office, we would find the illustrious PostMonster General and his minion Ross. We here at Paizo try to simulate the native environment of these computer folks, as it helps with productivity. Please, no flash photography—it disturbs their delicate sensibilities. Moving forward, we see that our Technical Director Vic is not yet in. Unlike the cave where his team slaves away, Vic's office is usually cheerfully lit by fluorescent lighting.

On your right we have a set of cubicles: one for yours truly, one for the warehouse manager, one for a laser printer, and one for a set of label printers. While quiet now, in a few days those label printers will fire up to continuously spit out subscription labels for hours at a time—truly a sight to behold.

Pressing onward, we have several more administrative offices lying dormant. This is to be expected, as we started our tour fairly early this morning and the residents have not yet arrived. Behind the door on the right is our server closet, where hundreds of little hamsters feverishly run in shifts to keep the servers running and the website on.

And here we have the upstairs breakroom, complete with refrigerator, sink and the all-important coffee maker. Next, past the restrooms, we have probably the most impressive location at the Paizo offices: the combination conference room and library. Here you will find all manner of old, new, rare, and interesting games, books, and magazines.

We are tight on time, folks, so let's keep moving along. Here we have still more offices. You'll notice that the double-doored corner office is the largest of the lot, fittingly occupied by our CEO, Lisa Stevens. The expansive office seems to help with the various and sundry secret meetings which take place there.

If you'll follow me down the stairs, please, past the monsters... here we have the offices belonging to our publisher, managing editor, and creative director. On the left are the set of cubicles referred to (for obvious reasons) as the "Editorial Pit."

And what do we have here...? It would appear that, unlike the other unoccupied offices, this one has its door open. What do you think, folks, should we take a peek inside?

It appears this is the office of lead designer Jason Bulmahn. Jason is on vacation this week and seems to have forgotten to arm his office's defense system. You folks might be getting more of a tour than you bargained for!

Let's just take a quick look at what we have on the desk...

Illustration by Carolina Eade

Sara Marie
S.M. Tours

The Foxes Have Landed (part II)

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Sara Marie: Those were some delicious biscuits! Over.

Crystal: This time we should say something less confusing and less likely to end with us eating biscuits. Like "Hedgehog."

....

Crystal: Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: I like porcupines better. Porcupine.

Crystal: Where are you, anyway? I got lost when the cave raptors were chasing us. Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: Let me turn on a light... Looks like I'm in Sarah's office. There's art all over the place. Porcupine.

Crystal: She must have left in a hurry. Does it look trapped? Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: I don't SEE anything that looks like a trap. Where are you? You're better at spotting traps than I am. Porcupine.

Crystal: I don't know. I dropped my darkvision when that lurking ray grabbed at us. Where ever I am, smells nice! Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: There's a folder marked "TOP SECRET" sitting right on top of her desk! I'm going to see if I can get a closer look. Porcupine.

Crystal: No wait! The "top secret" folder is Midwestern family recipes! It's almost certain to be booby-trapped!

Sara Marie: Where else should I check?

Crystal: Check the refrigerator. I think that's where she keeps the special art. Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: You're right! This thing is chock full of art-like pictures. Most of it seems like stuff that's already released. Porcupine.

Crystal: You should see what's in the dishwasher!

Sara Marie: Oooh wait! .... What's this! .... It's marked "Future Cover Art". Porcupine.

Crystal: Stuff from the future, huh? Sounds neat! Open it and see if a paradox destroys us all! Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: Wow! These are amazi-- ...Umm... I just heard a "click" sound. Is that bad? Porcupine.

Crystal: You've either stepped on a mine, or else let her lucky cricket out of its cage. Possibly both. I'm not certain if the cricket explodes. Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: PORCUPINE IS LEAVING THE NEST! REPEAT PORCUPINE IS LEAVING THE NEST!

...

Crystal: Sara? Sara, are you okay?

...

Crystal: SARA?!

...

Sara Marie: I'M OK! COPY THAT? I AM OK!

Crystal: Stop yelling or the cave raptors will find us again. Hedgehog.

Sara Marie: Where ever you are... Watch out! These people know how to lay traps! On the up-side, I made it out with two incredible pieces of artwork!

Pathfinder Player Companion Panel

Fri, Jun 18, 2010 at 02:26 PM Pacific

Sean, Sutter, and Rob fielding questions about the Pathfinder Player Companion line.

Joshua J. Frost
Events Manager

This Week at Paizo

Friday, May 7, 2010

It's been a busy week at Paizo... and we're not done yet.

Sean "The 'K' is for Konfident" Reynolds reassures me of what he already knows.	My desk midweek: ground zero for much chaos. (To answer the inevitable question here: Yes, I use them as bookmarks.)
It may drive us crazy, but putting out so many products does make for some pretty awesome hauls.

F. Wesley Schneider
Managing Editor

Oh Yeah!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

	Illustration by Alex Aparin

Harsk learns the perils of not bringing a large enough kettle to the triceratops tea party on the cover to Sargava, the Lost Colony.

James Sutter
Editor

Andoran, Spirit of Liberty Preview

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Andoran, Spirit of Liberty is due to arrive in January, and as the rest of the team is burning the midnight oil to get the next Pathfinder out the door, Wes deputized me to do a blog. Time for some preview art!

The patron celestial of Andoran is an avoral named Talmandor, and as there aren't avoral stats in the Pathfinder RPG Bestiary, we put their stats in Andoran—sort of a sneak peek for Bestiary II next year. The next picture shows that halfling paladins are just as badass as human ones—in this case the hero is Jamus Hainard, born to a farming family and inspired by the Eagle Knights to become a champion of freedom. Finally, a piece showing an Andoren general and his troops trying to cross a river.

Illustrations by Florian Stitz
Illustration by Craig J. Spearing

Sean K Reynolds
Developer, Pathfinder Companion

Ecology of the Pathfinder Product, Part 6: Move 6d6 Tons, and what do you get?

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Cave raptors are sated; it's time to blog!

So far, we've uncovered the shocking details of raising an innocent idea into a rebellious roleplaying product, but if your beloved book never moves out of the house, then it will never really make anything of itself. Now is the time when a PDF, so self-important, must go out into the world by itself. And sure, it may come back wrinkled or torn, or even upside down, but without that life experience, it will never truly be its own book. It's time to talk about the physical, blue-collar side of game design: printing, warehousing, and distribution.

For all intents and purposes, Dwarves is ready to pack up and head off to college. Out of sight of its overprotective developers and even its best friend, the art director, it will grow into a bearded adult of glossy pages and the comforting scent of ink. Then it comes home, where its loving parents criticize its dress, notices it's gained weight, and implies that it should cut its hair because it looks like a hippy. Then it leaves again.

Printing of RPG products is arranged through horrible, arcane methods, often via deals with unseen and unknowable supernatural powers. Paizo prefers to deal through the fey, who are both adept at weaving physical products from ideas and accept readily available sandwiches as payment (in truth, lead developer Jason Buhlman's most important contribution to the company is his astounding egg salad, which pleases the fey queen Titania and ensures a lasting business relationship and a minimum of ironic curses). Once the electronic layout of a book is finished, it is transferred through a series of tubes to the distant faerie courts. The attending pixies immediately spin it into gold, and then press the gold itself into physical books and arrange for its return. Total elapsed time to print a Paizo product: 14 minutes. Sadly, due to the unstable chronological connection between the First World and our own mortal realm, upwards of two months may pass in our world during that 14 minutes.

Eventually, sprite couriers, glamered as UPS drivers, drop off multiple tons of product at the Paizo warehouse. This fabulous structure, adjacent to the production offices, is the realm of warehouse manager and 10th-level monk Jeff Strand. The warehouse stores not only Paizo's catalog of products, but also much of the stock for the online store, and so organization is vital. Inhuman physical strength is also important, as every pallet of products can weigh up to an Imperial ton (which is to say, it weighs as much as 2,000 pounds worth of emperors). Jeff and his able-bodied assistants work tirelessly to ship orders out as soon new product arrives, focusing first on Paizo's thousands of loyal subscribers. During these rushes, Paizo CEO Lisa Stevens and Vice President Jeff Alvarez can even be found braving the warehouse's icy trenches and lurking glabrezu in order to send books far and wide.

The enormity of Paizo's distribution efforts is staggering, especially to a little goblin. In addition to sending out literally tons of product at a time to subscribers and fans, pallets of each and every product to come through the door immediately goes back out to retail distributors like Alliance and Diamond. Like NBA scouts, these distributors then ship our MVPs all across the U.S. of A. and beyond, across the ocean to Europe and even north into the fabled Canada. And this volume doesn't even include our licensees who translate Paizo products for non-English-speaking fans.

Printing and distribution are vital to the lifecycle of a gaming product. Without that final kick out of the nest, to plummet or soar, pages would be doomed to constant revision. Roleplaying is built on a spine of pulp and glue, and losing the physical quality of the game book means losing an important piece of our heritage. Without that healthy respect for the past, the next generation will grow up cold and mechanical, controlled as they are by the fluoride in their computer screens. By the end, we'll bow before our PDF overlords, and soylent green will be people!

Plus, if you drop your latest Pathfinder in the bathtub, you can fix it with a hairdryer—try doing that with an e-reader!

This wraps up our quick review of the Paizo publishing process; you now understand as much about creating new products as I do. Starting next week, we'll take a look at existing Paizo products with our new feature, Sci-Fried.

Crystal Frasier
Production Assistant

Ecology of the Pathfinder Product, Part 5: Layabout

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Cave raptors are sated; it's time to blog!

There comes a time in every game product's life when a developer has to learn to let go; to let his sweet, innocent babe go out, make mistakes, and grow into a book. A game product needs to stay out late, crash the car, and hang out with the wrong crowd. And that wrong crowd is the art director, in Paizo's case the amazing Sarah Robinson and the undefeated James Davis.

Welcome to the jungle we call layout.

When last we saw Dwarves of Golarion's's art director, she was a childhood friend helping to tutor the infant sourcebook in good grooming and healthy posture. But now that editorial puberty has hit, the art director becomes a corruptive influence. She'll introduce the book to page composition, gateway fonts, and the pagan ways of design. While the developer cares about making a good text, the art director (or humble-yet-beautiful production goblin) is only concerned with tarting the book up.

Once development and editing are finished, layout is everything else. It means making an attractive page that doesn't remind the reader of a junior-high science textbook. It means making sure the words, the art, and all the stat blocks don't trip over each other. It also means constantly harassing the developers and editors to cut or add words and send material to work with in a timely fashion. The process is arduous, often checking a work line by line for tight spacing or dangling widows (who hang around poorly laid-out products to get their kicks; during last month's move we uncovered no fewer than thirty-eight widows cleverly concealing themselves in the recycling bin). For any given product, the process may take hours, days, or even weeks, depending on how recently the art director has been fed.

In ye olden times, layout was performed by hand, using glue and a layout churn to mock up a page and send it away to the printer by horseless carriage. These days, much of the hard work of layout is performed by computer, where all the trimming and gluing are handled digitally. The common computer terms "Cut," "Paste," and "Churn" actually hail from these pre-computer layout processes.

This is the basic workspace, with the guides for page and column sizes. Boring enough.

Our text needs to live somewhere fancy, so first we design an attractive page.

We drop in the formatted text from the developer next.

Now we switch everything to a dwarfier font and adjust the text spacing a little.

Add some frames and titles, so we all know what we're looking at.

Now we drop in our artwork, wrap the text around it, and make sure everything fits.

And that's a finished spread!

Like a fancy show octopus with a mastery of sign language, a well laid-out product is a joy to look upon and easy to understand. While the prose might make a book beloved, its layout makes it popular, and often the only difference between a bestseller and a discount special is how well each page presents itself. Without good layout, even well-written books would languish in exile, their hideous countenances creating a wall between themselves and the general populace. Resentment would set in, and as their numbers grew alongside their discontent, murmurs of revolution would spread. Cries of "Viva la Composicion!" would echo through the winding streets, followed by bloody, horrific riots. Heads of editors and writers alike would roll as the dispossessed texts yearned for justice, but settled for vengeance.

To dodge that bloodshed, make sure to follow up your writing and editing with a loving layout. The bourgeoisie will thank you for your effort.

And now our baby manuscript has grown up into a finished book! Or has it? Still nothing more than a digital file and a pile of black-and-white printouts, Dwarves won't be it's own book until it has returned with a diploma from one of several prestigious printers. Next week, we'll examine what goes on once the book is out of Paizo's hands.

Crystal Frasier
Production Assistant

Ecology of the Pathfinder Product, Part 4: The Editor's Compositional Fitness Challenge

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Cave raptors are sated; it's time to blog!

Yes, editing: the sport of grammatically minded kings. So far we've examined the natural growth of Dwarves of Golarion, as well as its invaluable hours of education, and yet we've ignored physical fitness. Without a steady regimen of editing, our little manuscript could turn into a clumsy butterball, drawing ridicule and cruelty from other game products.

To keep a product trim, healthy, and happy, it's going to need editors to run it through its paces.

According to Paizo's editorial tag-team of Christopher Carey and James Sutter, an editor's job involves neither crushing the dreams of authors nor blindly hacking away at text, but instead is a carefully crafted routine to burn off flabby text and improve narrative posture. Like a cephalopod, any quality Paizo product needs to hit the gym regularly to keep it healthy. Just like any fitness-obsessed octopus will hit both the free-weights and the treadmill, Paizo products will rotate their editing to catch problems with grammar, spelling, word choice, continuity, voice, and even the occasional rewrite to adjust the word count. Even the greatest authors will occasionally dip into the candy-coated bacon of purple prose or forget to tie their punctuation, so a good editor can help make sure every product can fit into its cover before the big class reunion.

The amount of editing any given product needs is easily determined with the formula n+1, where n is the amount of time you actually have to edit the book. Because of this conundrum, it's important for editors to make the most of the time they do have. At Paizo, the ideal grammatical specimen sees four editorial passes: two from each of Paizo's own hard-nosed prose-wranglers. A 'pass' is a single read-through. Obsessive-compulsive as any wild pack rat, these editors greedily gobble up any mistakes they sniff out, trading it for proper spellings or active voice. And because anyone, even editors, can make mistakes, multiple passes and different editors help to ensure that no errors go unexamined.

For Paizo products especially, the editors also serve the dual role of security. They stand constant vigil over continuity of Golarion, ensuring that dead NPCs don't crop back up, that cities don't spontaneously shift location, and that worst of enemies aren't running around as BFF. The editors have the blessing and curse to read every product Paizo releases, from thrilling Planet Stories to mysterious modules, and serve as living repositories of the universe.

And yet they stay so svelte, just like the products they care for.

Editing is necessary for the health and longevity of a product. Without it, mistakes, typos, and plain, old dead wood can slip through into the final product, clogging intakes eventually leading to frustration overheating in readers. The heat released by frustrated readers contributes to the inconvenient truth of global warming, melting the polar ice caps, flooding coastal regions, and causing alligator populations to explode. Ultimately, mankind devolves into primitive tribes of swamp dwellers, hiding in terror from the maurading ultra-gators that have made this marshy, dystopian Earth their own!

So to keep your writing trim and healthy, and to ensure the survival of the human race, edit!

Now that our product is happy, healthy, and knows where its going in life, next week we're ready for that special time in every product's life when it truly becomes a book. Next week, we examine layout!

Crystal Frasier
Production Assistant

Ecology of the Pathfinder Product, Part 3: An Outbreak of Art

Tuesday, October 5, 2009

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Cave raptors are sated; It's time to blog!

As it stands, Dwarves of Golarion is now written and assembled by its loving developer. Though awkward and gangly, we can see what it will finally grow up into. But at this point, this happy child is nothing more than a text document in the daycare that is a documents folder, happy rolling in the mud and receiving bowl cuts from mom. But there's an ugly truth for gaming products that this little production goblin's learned at her junior prom: you can be creative and brilliant, but if you don't look good, nobody'll pick you up.

Enter the art order, the good grooming of game design.

The majestic octopus mates for life, and hopes to find a sensitive and intellectually compatible lover that shares its appreciation of American Gothic poetry, but it will make its initial judgments based on appearance and health. Similarly, good art can make a product seem interesting and romantic before the first words are even read. It can make the difference between a product you don't tell your friends about, and one you take home to mom. But like an attractive octopus, a quality illustration must be carefully cared for if it is to be worthwhile.

The art order begins once the text for a product has begun development. By now, the developer knows how everything will shake down, even if the specifics remain a mystery. The developer will sit down with the decorator crab that is the art director, and with careful attention to the budget, they decide how much art the book can stand and what compelling elements to call out in pictorial form. With that list completed, the task is kicked back to the developer and his editorial cronies, who write up brief descriptions of all the illustrations they'll need to get their product a seat at the popular table during lunch.

By now, the art director is already comfortable in its den, combing through the preferred artists list and thinking about what to assign to whom. Just like writers and tutors, different artists' styles lend themselves better to different moods and fit different products*. A happy, bubbly, or wacky artist would be a terrible fit for Dwarves of Golarion's "quiet and cool" attitude, and would be better suited for its goofy sidekick, Gnomes of Golarion. Once the art orders are written, the art director mails them along to the illustrators of choice, together with the promise of great riches.

The first thing received from the artists are those embarrassing family photos we like to call 'sketches.' These are passed out among the editorial and art staff, who make crippling judgments about cowlicks, large ears, and crooked teeth that will haunt the product well into adulthood. They also make note of any changes the artist needs to make.

Finally, the finished images are received from the artists who, like the octopus, die shortly afterwards. This cruel cycle of nature provides the few glimpse of a grown-up, mature product that needs to be home by ten because tonight is a school night.

Illustrations by Jeremy McHugh

The art order is vital in a product's life cycle because it prevents the normally docile artists from breaking free of their enclosures and wandering the streets, mauling and tagging innocent civilians at random. It also serves as the cranial implant that prevents the art directors from seizing the reigns of power and assuming their rightful places as god-kings, directing the entirety of a company's funding into a single, penultimate illustration that makes children weep and grown men fall to their knees in prayer. Very important if you are a company looking to put out more than one product.

By now in the life cycle, our game product has begun to grow up and go through some awkward changes. Suitors have come calling, and its started wearing makeup. Tune in next week when we'll examine how to cope with your precious first draft's frustrating period of editing!

Crystal Frasier
Production Assistant

*Except for Wayne Reynolds, whose art is universal and can bring peace to warring nations.

Ecology of the Pathfinder Product, Part 2: The Awkward Development Years

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Cave Raptors are sated; It's time to blog!

When last we left Dwarves of Golarion, it was a mere egg of an outline, being fussed over by attentive parents and waiting to hatch. But now it is time for that blessed moment when an idea emerges into the world as written words! It is time for… the development phase!

Development is the process of growing a book from an idea and a few rough notes into written text, rearing the infant outline into a rebellious and hateful teenager who will keep you up at nights, drinking your secret stash of scotch and praying to god it turns out alright. Much like the rearing of the noble octopus, a game product requires two separate parties: the designer and the developer. Designers are the writers and artists (more on those wily and attractive artists next week), while the developers are the core who tie everything together. Where developers are comparable to an overprotective parent, designers are more akin to teachers: chosen carefully by the developer to impart information and direction to their snot-nosed offspring.

Of course, this is not an insult. Both octopi and game developers are widely known for their post-nasal drip.

Choosing a writer is a careful task. Like parents, developers want someone who will make their job easier. These choices are made by means of an arcane formula that takes into account past products, punctuality, and relative position of the stars. Managing Editor Wes Schneider admits that Paizo relies on a small, incestuous lot of authors to rear our products. Putting new designers through their paces requires time and branding irons, both of which Paizo has in painfully limited quantities*.

For roleplaying products, the ideal designer can fill three vital roles for the juvenile product: author, game mechanic, and artisan. Telling a good story and having a firm grasp of the mechanics are important, but just as vital and oft overlooked is the role of player-friendly artifacts in a young game's life. Like a sweater vest, legible maps and gripping player handouts are those little touches that decide if a product rides along on the bus or resides at the cool table at lunch.

The developers' job is just as challenging and vital to give their books the best chance at happiness. They need to organize everything those precious bundles have absorbed from their designers and make sure they play nice with the other products. A developer needs to tweak the mechanics to balance with the system at large, rewrite some fluff to keep the narrative canon, and embarrass the product in front of its friends. Even the best writing needs at least a week or two in development, says Schneider, because "folks aren't here every day, and they don't know exactly what we need."

Dwarves of Golarion and similar anthology products are like troubled foster kids: they get bounced between several authors and other corrupting influences. A firm and loving eyeball is needed to guide them through this troubled time. The twitterpated Sean Reynolds, developer in charge of this problem child, has had his hands full. Every line written by its savage gang of authors needs to be reviewed for balance and continuity, and he must occasionally search its room for illicit substances and pop culture references.

Without proper development, a game product suffers. Its already-overworked Paizo parents stretch themselves too thin trying to write thousands of words a day while maintaining their backbreaking day jobs in the grammar mines. Neglected and uneducated, the books would fall back into dull narrative habits and eventually turn to crime to make ends meet. Crime rates skyrocket, property values plummet, and we are all left unprepared for the forthcoming invasion of the reptimen from the Earth's core!

So, for a happy and contributing addition to the RPG landscape, make sure you follow the example of the methodical octopus. Keep a close group of talent to help raise your products, but don't give away your own parental responsibilities!

Tune in next week, when we examine the art of art, and stretch the octopus metaphor to it's breaking point!

Crystal Frasier
Production Assistant

*Wes also mentions that if you're a newcomer who'd like to write for Paizo and has a high pain threshold, you should still write and submit. Both the Pathfinder Society Open Call and RPG Superstar are Paizo's favorite tools for reviewing new blood in an organized setting. Publishing your own material online through a blog or website is a good icebreaker as well (check out Paizo's Community Use Policy for more details). Being on productive and nonviolent terms with other publishers also helps, as the RPG industry is made up of a mere 73 people, all of whom know each other personally and frequently gather for the imbibing of caustic organic solvents.

Ecology of the Pathfinder Product, Part 1: Hatching an Outline

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Illustration by Crystal Frasier

Cave raptors are sated, so now it is time for blogging!

Few things spring into the world fully formed, and game products are no exception. And if you aren't involved in the publishing industry, you might expect the life cycle of a supplement as unknowable as that of an octopus.

And it is.

As a neophyte nanny in the Paizo maternity ward, my elbows-deep, on-the-job training has been a real eye-opener. And if I have to suffer through that experience, then there's no reason not to share the pain. Over the next few weeks, we'll take a look at the stages of development of a young sourcebook, show off embarrassing baby pictures, and generally demystify the miracle of life as we follow Dwarves of Golarion from Outline, to Development, through Art Orders, Editing, Layout, Extra Editing, and finally Printing and Shipping.

The octopus knows it is time to reproduce when the seasons are right. Similarly, Paizo Publisher par excellence, Erik Mona, explains that a product first emerges when the various carriers demand a season's previews for their catalogs. At this point, the development team enters a furious ritual to determine whose memes are passed on to the next generation of Pathfinder canon.

Once the product ideas are agreed upon, each one goes on to outlining.

As a book egg, the outline doesn't tell us much, except that the book is healthy and to start preparing the office for its blessed arrival. We know who the proud papas are, and the outline hints if the book will grow into a fluffy nerd or crunchy jock, but nothing is set in stone just yet. Developers dig out warm nests in a hard drive to house the outline, lining it with file folders and sticky notes until writers can be assigned to help the book hatch and develop. A title (and adorable nickname) is decided upon, the chapters are parsed out, words counts are decided, and a handful of notes give developers and contributors an idea what the baby book will look like all grown up.

Unlike the noble octopus, the developer does not hover over the outline, constantly blowing salt water over it. Sean Reynolds occasionally spills latte on his, but more in a crude ritual to beg the gaming gods for the product's continued health.

Some things are immutable: Companions and Modules are Small sized (32pages), while Chronicles and APs will grow to Medium size (64 and 96 pages). Much like octopi, the largest, healthiest writers get first claim to the larger, healthier books, though until the outline hatches into development, even it's parentage can change.

Dwarves of Golarion Outline

As we can see from these adorable Dwarves of Golarion baby photos, the prenatal book doesn't resemble the adult product except in title. As the final draft of the outline, it's already showing the beginning signs of development: Exact words counts for each chapter have been decided and writers have been assigned to sit on the project until it hatches. We can also see in the bottom, left-hand corner that a goblin has chewed on this outline: an obvious indicator of superior product!

Without the outline, development would grow higgledy-piggledy, with chapters repeating each other, growing like tumors until they stretched the page count to breaking. Writers would run free, uncontrolled and burning things they shouldn't burn. Chaos would spill into the streets, and civilization as we know it would crumble.

So remember kids, be like the mighty octopus: plan your books carefully before getting started and save us all unneeded anarchy.

Crystal Frasier
Production Assistant

Dwarves of Golarion

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Kazmur here had a nice, relaxing weekend. When you're a dwarf, you celebrate your work as much as you do your time off. And when your job is to chisel your king's face onto the side of the mountain, you know that your people will be admiring your work for generations to come. Also, you have sweet job security.

Illustrations by Jeremy McHugh

Sean K Reynolds
Developer, Pathfinder Companion

Cheliax, Empire of Devils

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Available mid-August, Cheliax, Empire of Devils is a Pathfinder Companion sourcebook written by a star cast of authors led by Amber Scott (contributor to Dragon magazine, the "Ecology of the Varisians" article for Pathfinder, and Dark Markets, A Guide to Katapesh) and Colin McComb (TSR veteran and a designer for Fallout II and Planescape: Torment). Developed hand-in-hand with the Council of Thieves Adventure Path, Cheliax serves up a big spicy dish of diabolical bureaucracy with its hands around the throat of the common people.

In a land ruled by devil-worshipers, nothing is quite... normal. Basement arenas in slums host cockatrice fights. The elite military forces train against devils to overcome fear. Priests of Asmodeus interpret laws. At the top of the hierarchy, lovely young Queen Abrogail issues orders to the royal scribes, redacting events of the past and issuing new official histories so that eventually all will believe that Cheliax has always been in league with Hell.

As the Pathfinder Companion line is designed to be player-friendly, inside you'll find articles on Westcrown (an excellent source of info for players about to start the Council of Thieves Adventure Path) and the capital city of Egorian, magic items and spells of Cheliax, religion in Cheliax (including how non-Asmodean religions are allowed to exist there), new traits, new combat feats to emulate devil fighting styles, and four fully statted NPCs suitable for contacts, hirelings, or cohorts.

Sean K Reynolds
Developer, Pathfinder Companion

Qadira, Gateway to the East

Monday, July 27, 2009

Qadira, Gateway to the East is a bit unique. It got delayed by the Paizo "snowpocalypse" of 2008, and its revised release date placed it much closer to the release date of the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. Rather than publishing a regional sourcebook and follow it a month later with the new rules, we secretly replaced its regular coffee with... I mean, secretly updated all the rules content to the Pathfinder RPG. So, technically, Qadira is a preview of Pathfinder that's available right now... we just kept it a secret.

Qadira is a cool book, especially if you like adventures in the style of Aladdin, Ali Baba, and Sinbad. The book gives the history of Qadira, its political climate (internal and external), a geographical overview, an in-character Qadiran perspective on the races and character archetypes of Golarion, the city of Katheer, Qadiran magical studies, feats, the daivrat prestige class (why force genies to do your bidding when they'll do it willingly for you?), and—of course—new traits! It's also the only Pathfinder Companion with monsters instead of a regular Persona column—but given the unique role of genies in Qadira, these "monsters" may actually be relatives of Qadiran PCs, whether a half-janni or the suli-jann. And every daivrat needs a little zhyen genie buddy! Just treat them nicely or they may turn into a cruel prankster called a jocta...

Art by Concept Art House

Sean K Reynolds
Developer, Pathfinder Companion

Snagged from the Vault: Taldor, Echoes of Glory

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Huzzah! The Preview Purloiners return from the treacherous Vault of the Golem once again with a fantastic prize—Ralph Horsley's art for the cover of Pathfinder Companion: Taldor, Echoes of Glory. Such beauteous art is particularly coveted by the Golem and its minions; but of course, the danger to our own lives is of no concern to you, our faithful readers. Now, please excuse us as we don hastily assembled disguises.

Vadid and Nahk
Preview Purloiners

Chivalry Tarnished
Knights, fair maidens, heroic adventures, and righteous quests—these are the legends of old Taldor. But the once powerful empire has fallen from its former glory. Now rival nobles battle each other with bitter knights and proxy armies for personal power rather than honor. A smoldering truce with Qadira again threatens to ignite into war, and Taldor's daughter states look down upon her with contempt. Yet there is still greatness in Taldor, a stone foundation under the flaking gold adornments. Sons and daughters of forgotten royal bloodlines hear change on the wind—but is it the whisper of greatness to come, or the death rattle of an empire long past its prime?

This Pathfinder Companion describes the country of Taldor and its capital of Oppara. Become one of the Lion Blades, a secret agent prestige class for the empire! Learn the magic of the oppressed church of the Dawnflower! Rise to greatness from humble origins with new feats! Gain the ostentatious magic of Taldor's wealthy elite! Taldor needs champions—are you ready for the challenge?

Welcome to Osirion!

Friday, October 3, 2008

Our third Pathfinder Companion takes us south into the legendary sands of Osirion. And what is pretty much the number one thing you need to watch out for in Osirion? Mummies, of course! But to me, it's not the mummies in Ralph Horsley's cover to Osirion: Land of Pharaohs you have to worry about... it's whoever built that freaky sphinx in the background that would have my characters nervous!

James Jacobs
Pathfinder Editor-in-Chief

Elves of Golarion

Friday, August 29, 2008

The second Pathfinder Companion is off to the printer! Elves of Golarion is filled with all sorts of information about one of the most popular races in the game; everything from details on the elven nation of Kyonin to magical food to elven PC Character Traits, and more! We'll have a bit more information to show off in the coming weeks, but for now, check out Ben Wootten's awesome cover for the book, wherein lovely Merisiel (and a few of her friends) give a band of bugbears a proper elven welcome to the woods.

James Jacobs
Pathfinder Editor-in-Chief

Character Traits, Part II

Monday, July 21, 2008

Back on June 23, I gave you a preview of the Character Traits system we're introducing in the Pathfinder Companion line. There, I'd mentioned that there were several different kinds of traits for you to mix and match—with a single trait roughly equaling half a feat in power, by picking to Character Traits your character effectively starts with a bonus feat that's tailored specifically to his or her background and personality.

Today, I'd like to preview what traits look like. Presented below are five of the ten Combat traits. These traits comprise a small portion of the 40 basic traits presented in the Second Darkness Player's Guide, and represent generic traits that you can pick from for any character for any campaign in any setting. Later installments of Pathfinder Companion will present more Golarion-specific traits for race, region, and religion, but these basic 40 traits comprise the baseline for them all. Again, when you pick your two character traits, you can only pick one from a particular category—a character can't have two Combat traits, for example. Picking traits from different categories, after all, is a great way to make a character seem a bit more well-rounded.

But enough of the chatter. On with the preview traits! (Oh, and you'll see lots of "trait" bonuses mentioned; this is a new type of bonus that never stacks with itself, but stacks with other bonuses.)

Anatomist: You have studied the workings of anatomy, either as a student at university or as an apprentice mortician or necromancer. You know where to aim your blows to strike vital organs and you gain a +1 trait bonus on all rolls made to confirm critical hits.

Armor Expert: You have worn armor as long as you can remember, either as part of your training to become a knight's squire or simply because you were seeking to emulate a hero. Your childhood armor wasn't the real thing as far as protection, but it did encumber you as much as real armor would have, and you've grown used to moving in such suits with relative grace. When you wear armor of any sort, reduce that suit's armor check penalty by 1, to a minimum check penalty of 0.

Bullied: You were bullied often as a child, and you are now constantly ready to defend yourself with your fists when an enemy comes near. You gain a +1 trait bonus on attack of opportunity attack rolls made with unarmed strikes. Note that this trait does not grant the ability to make attacks of opportunity with your unarmed strikes—you'll need to take a level of monk, the Improved Unarmed Strike feat, or some other similar power to gain the use of this Character Trait. However, that doesn't prevent you from selecting this trait. You'll simply not be able to make use of it until a later point if you do.

Courageous: Your childhood was brutal, yet you persevered primarily through force of will and the hope that no matter how hard things might get, as long as you kept a level head you'd make it through. You gain a +2 trait bonus on saving throws against fear effects.

Deft Dodger: Growing up in a rough neighborhood or a dangerous environment has honed your senses. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Reflex saves.

James Jacobs
Pathfinder Editor-in-Chief

Character Traits

Monday, June 23, 2008

In the first Pathfinder Companion, the Player's Guide to the Second Darkness Adventure Path, we introduce a new mechanic for tying your character's background and history into the gaming world as a whole. These are Character Traits, a concept we first introduced in the Curse of the Crimson Throne Player's Guide, where the trait you pick gives you not only a small bonus to your character, but ties him or her into the Adventure Path's storyline from the start. Starting with the Pathfinder Companions, we're solidifying this system into something you can use not only for Adventure Paths, but for any campaign.

At its core, a Character Trait is approximately equal in power to half a feat—in fact, at one point, we considered calling them "Half Feats" but abandoned that idea when we realized it implied a point-based system that didn't really exist (there's no such thing, for example, as a "Double Feat"). At the start of a new campaign, you can pick two traits for your character—in effect, gaining a bonus feat that you tailor from two different categories of options. Yet a Character Trait isn't just another kind of power you can add on to your character—it's a way to quantify (and encourage) building a character background that fits into the world of Golarion. Think of Character Traits as "story seeds" for your background; after you pick your two traits, you'll have a point of inspiration from which to build your character's personality and history. Alternatively, if you've already got a background in your head or written down for your character, you can view picking his traits as a way to quantify that background, just as picking race and class and ability scores quantifies his strengths and weaknesses.

At the start, there'll be 40 different basic traits to choose from (ten each, split over the categories of Combat Traits, Faith Traits, Magic Traits, and Social Traits), along with six Second Darkness specific traits (these'll be more like the traits we introduced at the start of Curse of the Crimson Throne), but that certainly won't be the end of the matter. The goal is to continue presenting additional traits in the Pathfinder Companions to come—traits based on your character's race, homeland, and religion. Eventually, the pool of traits you'll be able to choose from should cover just about any type of character background you'd ever want!

One more thing: Character Traits are for PCs. If a GM wants an NPC to have traits, that NPC will need to "buy" them with the Additional Traits feat. Player characters are special; they're the stars of the game, after all, and if they have an advantage over the NPCs of the world in this way, that kind of makes sense. The pregenerated characters presented in Pathfinder and the modules will not have bonus traits selected for them—we're leaving those choices to you if you wish to use one of them as a PC.

James Jacobs
Pathfinder Editor-in-Chief

A Favorable Companion

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

We're finishing up a whole bunch of great products this week, all of which will be available at Gen Con in a couple months. As most of you are probably keenly aware, we launch a whole new Adventure Path in August with the first 96-page chapter of Second Darkness. In addition, we provide the most comprehensive look at Golarion and the Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting with our expansive 256-page campaign setting hardcover. Not to be outdone, of course, is the Pathfinder RPG Beta release, a 400-page behemoth chock full of awesome.

Don't overlook, though, Paizo's release of the first of its new line of products that provide useful flavor and new rules for GMs and players alike: the 32-page Pathfinder Companion. Each Pathfinder Companion will cover some topic related to the campaign setting in great detail, presenting both flavorful information and new character options.

This first Pathfinder Companion fills the role of the Second Darkness player's guide, but goes so much further. In August's Companion, we introduce a structured and expansive traits section. We first introduced traits in the Curse of the Crimson Throne player's guide, but with this player's guide we set out more defined rules and a much greater variety of available traits. In each subsequent Pathfinder Companion, we'll introduce some more traits to give you an even greater selection to choose from.

In fact, to give you a little glimpse at what we've got coming your way, here's a short excerpt and a bit of art for you.

Character Trait Design Philosophy

At its core, a Character Trait is approximately equal in power to half a feat—in fact, at one point, we considered calling them "Half Feats" but abandoned that idea when we realized it implied a point-based system that didn't really exist (there's no such thing, for example, as a "Double Feat"). Yet a Character Trait isn't just another kind of power you can add on to your character—it's a way to quantify (and encourage) building a character background that fits into the world of Golarion. Think of Character Traits as "story seeds" for your background—after you pick your two traits, you'll have a point of inspiration to build your character's personality and history from. Alternately, if you've already got a background in your head or written down for your character, you can view picking his Traits as a way to quantify that background, just as picking race and class and ability scores quantifies his strengths and weaknesses.

One more thing—Character Traits are for PCs. If you want an NPC to have traits, that NPC will need to "buy" them with the Additional Traits feat. Player characters are special—they're the stars of the game, after all, and if they have an advantage over the NPCs of the world in this way, that kind of makes sense. The pregenerated characters presented in Pathfinder and the modules will not have bonus Traits selected for them—we're leaving those choices to you if you wish to use one of them as a PC.

Mike McArtor
Editor

Pathfinder Companion Art Preview!

Friday, May 30, 2008

Being one of the newest employees here at Paizo certainly has its advantages, one of which is that I get to see some of the new stuff coming in. In an effort to not be a selfish, selfish man, I thought I'd share some of the love with you.

Here are a couple of sweet art pieces from August's Pathfinder Companion: Second Darkness. For those that don't know, Pathfinder Companion will be a new series of player-friendly, 32-page, bimonthly books designed to enlighten different aspects of the Pathfinder Chronicles campaign setting, such as Elves of Golarion or Osirion: Land of Pharaohs. This first Pathfinder Companion will be a key resource for players and GMs playing through Pathfinder's Second Darkness Adventure Path, which begins in Pathfinder #13.

Jacob Burgess
Online Retail Coordinator