The City of Glimmerhold from Clash of the Kingslayers

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

The Pathfinder module Clash of the Kingslayers by RPG Superstar author Leandra Christine Schneider takes place in and around the dwarven city of Glimmerhold. During the development of the adventure, the text ended up running a little long. To make some room, we dropped the map of Glimmerhold, as little of the combat action takes place in the city, and including the map wasn’t critical for running the adventure. However, the map (drawn by Rob Lazzaretti) is really cool, showing a pillared dwarven city in the middle of an artificial lake. So here it is, ready for exploration by curious PCs.

Warning: This map image is a potential spoiler for part of the adventure. If you expect to be a player in this adventure, avert your eyes!

Sean K Reynolds
Developer

Didn't Make the RPG Superstar Top 32? Try Pathfinder Society!

Thursday, January 29, 2009

The 2009 RPG Superstar contest drew in hundreds of entries from around the world in a contest to crown the ultimate new roleplaying game design talent. It took the judges six weeks to reduce the mountain of entries to the 32 finalists and a handful of alternates. That means hundreds of you didn't make it into the RPG Superstar Top 32—that means that hundreds of you should submit for the Pathfinder Society Scenario Open Call!

You submitted to RPG Superstar not only hoping to win an RPG Design contest, but also hoping to get a chance to see your name on a Pathfinder Module sitting on the shelf at your local game store. Pathfinder Society Scenarios may not be sold in stores, but getting your name on one is no less prestigious—you get to see your name on a product being used in hundreds, maybe even thousands, of organized play tables around the world.

Alternatively, and perhaps even more importantly, being selected to write a scenario for Pathfinder Society Organized Play does one other thing for you: it gets your foot in the door. Write a good scenario, one that blows me away with its writing style, imagery, ideas, and maps, and I'll be in the editorial pit the moment after I read it saying, "This is the person you want for X assignment!" Writing a scenario gets you noticed, may get you additional writing work, and keeps you fresh in our minds when thinking of new talent to tap for new projects.

Our current open call runs through midnight tomorrow—plenty of time to get a submission in for at least one of them! I hope to see yours in the submission stack.

Joshua J. Frost
Events Manager

The Clash Begins

Friday, November 14, 2008

It's been many, many months since Leandra Christine Schneider won the first RPG Superstar contest, but we're finally almost there—her module, Clash of the Kingslayers, is going through its last bits of editing as I type this. To celebrate, check out some of the art from the adventure!

James Jacobs
Pathfinder Editor-in-Chief

RPG SUPERSTAR: WE HAVE A WINNER!

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

In early November Paizo challenged amateur game designers from around the world to show off their skills in a revolutionary online contest called RPG Superstar. From more than 850 submitted wondrous items, celebrity judges Erik Mona (Paizo's Publisher), Wolfgang Baur (Editor-in-Chief, Kobold Quarterly), and Clark Peterson (President, Necromancer Games) narrowed the field to 32 would-be RPG Superstars, and further rounds have narrowed that field in the intervening weeks.

The final round asked the four competing finalists to propose a 32-page GameMastery Module for ultimate publication by Paizo as the Grand Prize of RPG Superstar. Contestants Clinton Boomer (Macomb, IL), Rob McCreary (Prague, Czech Republic), Jason Nelson (Seattle, WA), and Christine Schneider (Neu-Isenburg, Germany) responded with four excellent proposals, each worthy of publication in its own way.

But there can be only one RPG Superstar, and in the end after the celebrity judges had a chance to offer comments and criticism and the general public had their final vote, one proposal stood out as the clear winner.

Congratulations to Christine Schneider for her victorious proposal, "Clash of the Kingslayers." Here's a brief description of the adventure from Christine's winning RPG Superstar submission:

This module will set the heroes against the gods' blind wrath in defence of a dwarven city-kingdom. During the course of the adventure the PCs will cross swords with dwarvish valkyries, fight giants freed from the underworld, unravel an ancient secret, and explore a remote monastery. What starts as a casual dungeon crawl, will turn into a frantic pandemonium as the monastery is imbued with divine life to wage war on the city the heroes might choose to protect or even aid to destroy. Ultimately, the PCs get the chance to slay not one, but three kings in attempt to end this madness and write the final lines of an ancient tragedy. This adventure is intended for characters of 10th-level and will yield enough experience to advance them to 11th-level or even half-way to 12th-level.

As RPG Superstar's Grand Prize, Paizo will contract Christine Schneider to write "Clash of the Kingslayers," which we will release as GameMastery Module S1 in January, 2009.

But you don't have to wait until January to reserve your copy! Head over to the new "Clash of the Kingslayers" product page here on paizo.com to preorder your copy of Christine's winning adventure! If you already subscribe to GameMastery Modules, "Clash of the Kingslayers" will arrive as part of your ongoing subscription.

On behalf of judges Wolfgang Baur and Clark Peterson as well as the whole Paizo Publishing family, congratulations to Clinton Boomer, Rob McCreary, Jason Nelson, and Christine Schneider.

Remember those names, folks. You'll be hearing from all of them in the months and years to come. Though the contest produced only one true RPG Superstar, it also turned up a huge number of fresh voices we plan to work with for a long time to come.

And I'd like to offer one final thanks to you, the readers of paizo.com and to anyone who submitted an entry to this year's RPG Superstar contest. The event has been enormously popular here on the site, and even the wizened old judges learned a thing or two along the way. Something this successful is certain to return, so in the meantime sharpen your pencils and start working on some wondrous items.

The next RPG Superstar is only a few months away!

Erik Mona
Paizo Publisher

RPG Superstar Top 4

Christine Schneider, Neu-Isenburg, Hessen (Germany)     Chase on Charred Ground     Mind the Machine     Arthelia "Lady of Legends Undone"     Theocracy of Carnamach     Arcane Anvil Clinton Boomer, Macomb, IL (USA)     Impartial Tribunal     Kakuen-Taka, The Hunger that Moves     Abzirael Ul-Shadai, the Cackling Whirling     Cyrehllan, The Isle of Cold Tears     Crown of the Breaching Legion

Jason Nelson, Seattle, WA (USA)     Vale of Rohthang's Rest     In the bleak midwinter     Avinash, Master of the Catspaw Marauders     Bereket     Phial of Ebon Flame Rob McCreary, Prague (Czech Republic)     Monkey Goblins Attack!     The Ooze Imperium     Onuyaka, the All-Seeing Eye     Iskandria     Coin Belt of Beguiling

The easy stuff is over.

In the beginning more than 850 would-be superstars submitted their best wondrous items. We narrowed that down to our favorite 32.

From there things got more difficult. The art of game design involves both rules and flavor text, of course, but if you can't handle pure flavor text, no one is going to want to read your stuff. Round 2 was a pure flavor test, leaving you armed only with the quality of your ideas and the power of your writing.

Only 16 contestants survived the scrutiny of the general public to move on to Round 3. Because every good adventure needs a great villain, we asked you to show us your worst, and you came back with your very best.

With 8 designers remaining, we asked for three thematically linked monsters to test your ability to follow directions, the power of your ideas, and your ability to handle complex rules.

The 6 most popular contestants got to design an encounter, completing a series of tasks meant to test just about every individual element included in an adventure module.

Fitting, really, since the four remaining contestants will compete for the chance to write an original adventure for Paizo's GameMastery Modules line. So far every victory in this contest has granted you bragging rights around game tables and on the internet. No more.

The winner of this contest—the RPG Superstar—gets their foot in the door with an honest-to-goodness printed product with their name right there on the cover, and all of their beautiful ideas given form, maps, and illustrations right there on the printed page.

Accordingly, the final RPG Superstar challenge is to design a complete proposal for that winning module. As in previous rounds, the judges will comment on each entry and the general public will vote on their favorites.

The author of the submission that receives the greatest number of votes will be named the RPG Superstar.

The RPG Superstar will get a production deal for a Paizo GameMastery Module.

Erik Mona
Publisher

Congratulations to the Top 6

The voters have spoken! As the competition rises in difficulty, the contestants now have just a few days to design an encounter.

Christine Schneider, Neu-Isenburg, Hessen (Germany)     Mind the Machine     Arthelia "Lady of Legends Undone"     Theocracy of Carnamach     Arcane Anvil Clinton Boomer, Macomb, IL (USA)     Kakuen-Taka, The Hunger that Moves     Abzirael Ul-Shadai, the Cackling Whirling     Cyrehllan, The Isle of Cold Tears     Crown of the Breaching Legion Jason Nelson, Seattle, WA (USA)     In the bleak midwinter     Avinash, Master of the Catspaw Marauders     Bereket     Phial of Ebon Flame

Joe Outzen, Saint Louis Park, MN (USA)     Born of Lightning     Kotalya, Mistress of Demonlake     Moros Akalein: The Wandering Nation     Torch of Solidity Rob McCreary, Prague (Czech Republic)     The Ooze Imperium     Onuyaka, the All-Seeing Eye     Iskandria     Coin Belt of Beguiling Russell Taylor, Eugene, OR (USA)     The Darkblight     Seskadrin, Satrap of the Ahestian Sea     Eluraelon     Gloves of Force Shaping

Note: As of Round 4, the schedule has been adjusted to give the judges an extra day to evaluate and comment on entries. Voting windows will now begin on Thursdays instead of Wednesdays.

RPG Superstar Top 8

The voters have spoken! Congratulations to the Top 8—we're all looking forward to your monsters in Round 4.

Christine Schneider, Neu-Isenburg, Hessen (Germany)     Arthelia "Lady of Legends Undone"     Theocracy of Carnamach, Arcane Anvil Clinton Boomer, Macomb, IL (USA)     Abzirael Ul-Shadai, the Cackling Whirling     Cyrehllan, The Isle of Cold Tears, Crown of the Breaching Legion Jason Nelson, Seattle, WA (USA)     Avinash, Master of the Catspaw Marauders     Bereket, Phial of Ebon Flame Joe Outzen, Saint Louis Park, MN (USA)     Kotalya, Mistress of Demonlake     Moros Akalein: The Wandering Nation, Torch of Solidity

Joseph Yerger, Sarasota, FL (USA)     Voeren van Premie, Herald of Than Aivel     The Prison Colony of Saran, Elemental Quiver Neil McClean, Cantebury (United Kingdom)     Henrietta "Hetty" Miller, Murderous Midwife     The Enlightened Kingdom of Vramaire, Shroud of Old Souls Rob McCreary, Prague (Czech Republic)     Onuyaka, the All-Seeing Eye     Iskandria, Coin Belt of Beguiling Russell Taylor, Eugene, OR (USA)     Seskadrin, Satrap of the Ahestian Sea     Eluraelon, Gloves of Force Shaping

Note: As of Round 4, the schedule has been adjusted to give the judges an extra day to evaluate and comment on entries. Voting windows will now begin on Thursdays instead of Wednesdays.

Voting for Round 3 Entries Is Now Open!

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

The RPG Superstar Top 16 have created their villains and the judges have had their say. Now it's your turn! Vote for your four favorite entries.

Alexander MacLeod, Raleigh, NC (USA)     Torquil Wiesel, Ghost of the Stoneburg     Freeholds of Karistynia, Malleus Maleficarum Andrew Black, Florence, KY (USA)     Kalyani Yafa, High Priestess of the Scaled One     Spine Peaks, Goblin Strand of Ears Christine Schneider, Neu-Isenburg, Hessen (Germany)     Arthelia "Lady of Legends Undone"     Theocracy of Carnamach, Arcane Anvil Clinton Boomer, Macomb, IL (USA)     Abzirael Ul-Shadai, the Cackling Whirling     Cyrehllan, The Isle of Cold Tears, Crown of the Breaching Legion Erik Anderson, Pittsfield, MA (USA)     Mwana, Queen of the Slithering     Ghost Hound Kinships of the Rolling Plains, Charts of the Shadow Voyage Hal Maclean, Hubbards, Novia Scotia (Canada)     Durgal Maldar "the martyr eater"     Beria "Under New Management", Nausea Pill James MacKenzie, Tucson, AZ (USA)     The Haunter of the Hills     Land of the Stained Peaks, Leash of the Shadowhound Jason Nelson, Seattle, WA (USA)     Avinash, Master of the Catspaw Marauders     Bereket, Phial of Ebon Flame

Joe Outzen, Saint Louis Park, MN (USA)     Kotalya, Mistress of Demonlake     Moros Akalein: The Wandering Nation, Torch of Solidity Joseph Yerger, Sarasota, FL (USA)     Voeren van Premie, Herald of Than Aivel     The Prison Colony of Saran, Elemental Quiver Neil McClean, Cantebury (United Kingdom)     Henrietta "Hetty" Miller, Murderous Midwife     The Enlightened Kingdom of Vramaire, Shroud of Old Souls Rob McCreary, Prague (Czech Republic)     Onuyaka, the All-Seeing Eye     Iskandria, Coin Belt of Beguiling Russell Taylor, Eugene, OR (USA)     Seskadrin, Satrap of the Ahestian Sea     Eluraelon, Gloves of Force Shaping Samuel Kisko, Morgantown, WV (USA)     Fleshstripping in Zopotishto     Yithnai, Migrus Locker Walter Pullen, Seattle, WA (USA)     Elsie, The Hand Collector     Olanra: undersea enchantment, Blindspot Orb William McNulty, Philadelphia, PA (USA)     Limro the Constructor     Akram Zafir, Mask of the Elemental Guardian

RPG Superstar Top 16

Wednesday, December 12

Here are the top 16, chosen by you:

Alexander MacLeod, Raleigh, NC (USA)    Freeholds of Karistynia, Malleus Maleficarum Andrew Black, Florence, KY (USA)    Spine Peaks, Goblin Strand of Ears Christine Schneider, Neu-Isenburg, Hessen (Germany)    Theocracy of Carnamach, Arcane Anvil Clinton Boomer, Macomb, IL (USA)    Cyrehllan, The Isle of Cold Tears, Crown of the Breaching Legion Erik Anderson, Pittsfield, MA (USA)    Ghost Hound Kinships of the Rolling Plains, Charts of the Shadow Voyage Hal Maclean, Hubbards, Novia Scotia (Canada)    Beria "Under New Management", Nausea Pill James MacKenzie, Tucson, AZ (USA)    Land of the Stained Peaks, Leash of the Shadowhound Jason Nelson, Seattle, WA (USA)    Bereket, Phial of Ebon Flame

Joe Outzen, Saint Louis Park, MN (USA)    Moros Akalein: The Wandering Nation, Torch of Solidity Joseph Yerger, Sarasota, FL (USA)    The Prison Colony of Saran, Elemental Quiver Neil McClean, Cantebury (United Kingdom)    The Enlightened Kingdom of Vramaire, Shroud of Old Souls Rob McCreary, Prague (Czech Republic)    Iskandria, Coin Belt of Beguiling Russell Taylor, Eugene, OR (USA)    Eluraelon, Gloves of Force Shaping Samuel Kisko, Morgantown, WV (USA)    Yithnai, Migrus Locker Walter Pullen, Seattle, WA (USA)    Olanra: undersea enchantment, Blindspot Orb William McNulty, Philadelphia, PA (USA)    Akram Zafir, Mask of the Elemental Guardian

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Silas McDermott was among the top 16, but elected to drop out of the competition before voting closed, allowing the 17th-highest vote-getter to advance.

Entries for Round 2: Design a Country

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

The top 32 finalists have completed the assignment to design a country for Round 2, and the judges have weighed in—now it's up to you. Vote for up to five of the following:

Alex Handley—Kerpiquan: the Land of Lost Civilisations Alexander MacLeod—Freeholds of Karistynia Andrew Black—Spine Peaks Chad Patterson—Steppenland Chris Nichols—Iolandis Christine Schneider—Theocracy of Carnamach Clinton Boomer—Cyrehllan, The Isle of Cold Tears Daniele Nanni—Agregia Erik Anderson—Ghost Hound Kinships of the Rolling Plains Hal Maclean—Beria "Under New Management" James MacKenzie—Land of the Stained Peaks Jason Nelson—Bereket Jeb Boyt—Vendithian Union Joe Outzen—Moros Akalein: The Wandering Nation Joel Flank—Ulmlinzi-Kiwanja Joseph Yerger—The Prison Colony of Saran

Laurens de Haan—Cumavea Mauricio Quintana—The Country of Nelvia Michael Kogan—Calidune Michael Raper—The Grand Duchy of Draeth Neil McClean—The Enlightened Kingdom of Vramaire Rennie Saunders—Idalia of the Twisted Lands Rob McCreary—Iskandria Robert McRae—Drei-Conità Robert Nichols—Laraklan, Nexus of Magic Ross Byers—Terram Russell Taylor—Eluraelon Samuel Kisko—Yithnai Silas McDermott—Kestria - "A nation on the edge." Walter Pullen—Olanra: undersea enchantment William Cronk—Malar, 'The Shattered Empire' William McNulty—Akram Zafir

The Top 32

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

After reviewing more than 850 wondrous items, the judges have selected the 32 RPG Superstar finalists! They are:

Alex Handley—Talisman of Whispering Souls Alexander MacLeod—Malleus Maleficarum Andrew Black—Goblin Strand of Ears Chad Patterson—Greaves of the Monkey Chris Nichols—Deadstring Shears Christine Schneider—Arcane Anvil Clinton Boomer—Crown of the Breaching Legion Daniele Nanni— Gloves of Adaptive Combat Dwayne Monroe—Cloak of Rian's Mercy Erik Anderson—Charts of the Shadow Voyage Hal Maclean—Nausea Pill James MacKenzie—Leash of the Shadowhound Jason Nelson—Phial of Ebon Flame Jeb Boyt—Figurine of Shielding Joe Outzen—Torch of Solidity Joel Flank—Bodyguard's Vest

Joseph Yerger—Elemental Quiver Laurens de Haan—Orb of the Ocean Mauricio Quintana—Paper-Folding Instructions of Master Mo Michael Kogan—Tinnil's Stirring Rod Michael Raper—Elemental Glyphstone Neil McClean—Shroud of Old Souls Rennie Saunders—Beacon of Hope Rob McCreary—Coin Belt of Beguiling Robert McRae—Thieves Cowl Ross Byers—Seer's Tea Samuel Kisko—Migrus Locker Silas McDermott—Lantern of Selective Perception Viktor Svindland—Diviner's Trepanation Drill Walter Pullen—Blindspot Orb William Cronk—Chiurgeon's Chest William McNulty—Mask of the Elemental Guardian

In addition, Hobert Lanham, Mirza Jasarevic, Robert Nichols and Russell Taylor were selected as alternates. (Names listed in alphabetical order.)

Get Your Big Break!

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Ever thought about trying to break into the gaming industry, but have no idea where to start? Now's your chance! Starting at the end of October, paizo.com will host RPG Superstar, the first adventure game industry design contest voted on by the fans, aimed at finding the newest talent in RPG design.

"With the end of the print editions of Dragon and Dungeon magazines, Paizo has lost a conduit to find new designers," says Lisa Stevens, Paizo's CEO. "We're launching a RPG design contest to give unknown talent a chance to get noticed!"

Starting on October 31, 2007, any eligible person will be able to submit an entry into the contest. For the open call, that entry will be a wondrous item using the 3.5 SRD. Each entry needs to be 200 words or less, and must include all of the proper mechanics and flavor. Judges will announce the top 32 entries on November 28; those contestants will advance to the first round of public voting, where they will be assigned a new design task and their entries will be posted on paizo.com for the public to read, critique, and vote on. The designers garnering the most votes will continue on to subsequent rounds, and the ultimate winner will earn a paid commission to write one of Paizo's upcoming GameMastery Modules!

Paizo has gathered together three judges to oversee the competition. Paizo's Publisher, Erik Mona, will share the spotlight with fan-favorite author and Kobold Quarterly publisher Wolfgang Baur, as well as Necromancer Games co-owner Clark Peterson. Each round, these judges will critique the entries before the public vote.

The fans themselves will decide which talented designers go on to the next round by casting a vote on paizo.com for their favorite contestant. Each round includes a six-day window for fans to discuss the entries and cast their votes. After the open call round ends, the next rounds will proceed as follows:

Top 32: Design a country
Top 16: Design a villain (complete with stat block)
Top 8: Design three thematically linked monsters
Top 6: Design an encounter
Top 4: Submit a full adventure proposal

The winner of the first RPG Superstar contest will be announced on February 20, 2008.

Complete rules and entry form are available at paizo.com/rpgsuperstar. Do you have what it takes to be the next RPG Superstar?

Go to paizo.com/rpgsuperstar and find out!

Joshua J. Frost
Paizo Director of Sales and Marketing