Raise Defense Screens!

Monday, May 29, 2017

A good GM screen can be so much more than a way to hide campaign notes and die rolls from nosy players. At its best, it can function as a handy reference tool that obviates the need for a GM to constantly consult her books. But just as importantly, the side facing the players should be something interesting for them to look at, an image that evokes the style and themes of the game and helps get them in the zone.

Illustration by Ignacio Bazán Lazcano

The Starfinder GM Screen gives GMs four panels of diagrams, tables, and summaries of the Starfinder RPG's more common rules and systems. From the most encountered DCs for skill checks to a list of combat actions, an abridged descriptions of the game's conditions to a synopsis of starship combat, this GM screen is packed with information!

And let's talk about the art! Just look at this gorgeous tableau illustrated by Ignacio Bazán Lazcano! All of our Starfinder iconics are fighting for their lives, while a massive space battle rages on above them. If that doesn't get you excited about playing, nothing will!

Jason Keeley
Editor

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Tags: Ignacio Bazán Lazcano Starfinder
Dark Archive Vendor - Fantasiapelit Tampere

THAT IS SOME SCREEN.


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

looks good.

Dave2

Silver Crusade

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Combat actions​!

Dark Archive

space worm!


Pathfinder Adventure, Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Beautiful!

Dark Archive

Im guessing it isnt landscape though. This one looks nice but tall screens just dont work as well for me.

Dark Archive

Amazing.

Is the giant space worm an indicator that we will get creatures above colossal size?

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Society Subscriber
Mine all mine...don't touch wrote:
Im guessing it isnt landscape though. This one looks nice but tall screens just dont work as well for me.

You want it 8 A5 sized stuck together instead of 4 A4? I can see the appeal of that yeah. It makes it less impersonal. I personally tend to have the GM screen off to my side when I use it (or not even set up at all).

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Incredible art. Is there a chance you'll release a desktop background resolution version?


I hope that lit of common DCs include which knowledges are used to identify which aliens/beasts, as that's the one thing I can never remember for pathfinder.


That is amazing.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Arutema wrote:
Incredible art. Is there a chance you'll release a desktop background resolution version?

Seconded!

This is stunning.


1 person marked this as a favorite.

We have achieved full GoTG, repeat, Full GoTG!


6 people marked this as a favorite.

Seriously, Starfinder is what would happen if Guardians and Farscape had a baby and then rolled stats for said baby.


Are those creatures the Swarm? They look a bit like shirren so I was thinking they might be the Swarm.


Archmage Variel wrote:
Are those creatures the Swarm? They look a bit like shirren so I was thinking they might be the Swarm.

They look too "Roboty" to be the Swarm.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
thecursor wrote:
Archmage Variel wrote:
Are those creatures the Swarm? They look a bit like shirren so I was thinking they might be the Swarm.
They look too "Roboty" to be the Swarm.

I thought maybe that was a form of chitin that swarm warriors had evolved. Maybe shirren were part of the swarm worker caste.

Liberty's Edge

CoeusFreeze wrote:

Amazing.

Is the giant space worm an indicator that we will get creatures above colossal size?

My bet is on living ships, as in creatures large enough to be considered starships and use the starships' scale where Tiny is the Size of a X-wing ;-)

Colossal starships, are those moons ?

If we want bigger, they just might introduce a Size scale for solid planets and one for gaseous planets :-)

Liberty's Edge

Archmage Variel wrote:
thecursor wrote:
Archmage Variel wrote:
Are those creatures the Swarm? They look a bit like shirren so I was thinking they might be the Swarm.
They look too "Roboty" to be the Swarm.
I thought maybe that was a form of chitin that swarm warriors had evolved. Maybe shirren were part of the swarm worker caste.

I find it likely that the Swarm would have annihilated a rebellious warrior group, while a few drones no longer responding to orders was perceived as an unimportant loss not worth scouring the galaxy

Makes me wonder if the Swarm the Pact Worlds face is just one specific hive among billions out there (with differing species and behaviours)


1 person marked this as a favorite.
The Raven Black wrote:
CoeusFreeze wrote:

Amazing.

Is the giant space worm an indicator that we will get creatures above colossal size?

My bet is on living ships, as in creatures large enough to be considered starships and use the starships' scale where Tiny is the Size of a X-wing ;-)

Colossal starships, are those moons ?

If we want bigger, they just might introduce a Size scale for solid planets and one for gaseous planets :-)

That's no moon...


But can I get the giant worm as a mount?


Who ever they're fighting, it's clear that the spice must flow.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
McBugman wrote:
Who ever they're fighting, it's clear that the spice must flow.

Muad'Dib

Muad'Dib!
Muad'Dib!!


2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber

Well, we certainly aren't going for subtlety...

I also hope this is a landscape screen. Reaching over landscape screens is obnoxious enough as it is...the tall ones are a throwback to an era of gaming I have not felt since...

Dark Archive

Jerricho wrote:

Well, we certainly aren't going for subtlety...

I also hope this is a landscape screen. Reaching over landscape screens is obnoxious enough as it is...the tall ones are a throwback to an era of gaming I have not felt since...

With four panels I think you and I are out of luck.


4 people marked this as a favorite.

If you have a hard time reaching over your screen then your GM throne or dias isn't high enough.


Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber
Plausible Pseudonym wrote:
If you have a hard time reaching over your screen then your GM throne or dias isn't high enough.

No...then I would need one of those extended grabby-hands...personally, I'd go for the T-rex head one.


Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber
Mine all mine...don't touch wrote:
Jerricho wrote:

Well, we certainly aren't going for subtlety...

I also hope this is a landscape screen. Reaching over landscape screens is obnoxious enough as it is...the tall ones are a throwback to an era of gaming I have not felt since...

With four panels I think you and I are out of luck.

I think you are right...which is unfortunate. Still, happy for those that are happy!


Plausible Pseudonym wrote:
If you have a hard time reaching over your screen then your GM throne or dias isn't high enough.

I have slavishly loyal minions of darkness to do that for me. They serve me...utterly. I am both loved and feared as the hand of the Twenty Sided God! Know me, for I am darkness and suffering, I am the servant of the fates and the maker of both heroes and villains. I am the giver of life and the bringer of doom, look upon me and tremble!


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Keep an eye on the ysoki, make sure he doesn't steel any batteries.


I think this looks epic and evocative in all the right ways.

It's weird; my immediate association to the screen art was the sprawling space battles depicted on the backs of the boxes for the original G1 Transformers. And just like that art did for those toys, this art makes me really want to jump right in to Starfinder.


This is a good step back for me. I was almost upset that the "Monday" preview this week was just a product, but I had to step back and take a breath about it. Setting and stuff early in the week... crunchy bits later. Everything is fine. Breathe. ;)

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber

Can we get a higher-res version of that as a wallpaper for either ultrawide (3440x1440) or double screens (3840x1080)? Watermark it or just brand it with the Starfinder logo in the negative space in the bottom left corner just so everyone remembers exactly what it's for.


Archmage Variel wrote:
thecursor wrote:
Archmage Variel wrote:
Are those creatures the Swarm? They look a bit like shirren so I was thinking they might be the Swarm.
They look too "Roboty" to be the Swarm.
I thought maybe that was a form of chitin that swarm warriors had evolved. Maybe shirren were part of the swarm worker caste.

With that Eox boneship up above, and the rib-like metallic chestplates, I'd imagine they are robo-zombies?

Sovereign Court

I know it's space, and I appreciate an action screen, but that is one muddy, dark screen.
I'd prefer something brighter.

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Damanta wrote:
Mine all mine...don't touch wrote:
Im guessing it isnt landscape though. This one looks nice but tall screens just dont work as well for me.
You want it 8 A5 sized stuck together instead of 4 A4? I can see the appeal of that yeah. It makes it less impersonal. I personally tend to have the GM screen off to my side when I use it (or not even set up at all).

Our screens are four 8.5x11" panels attached on the long sides (meaning the panels are in portrait orientation), making the finished product 34" wide and 11" high. Other screens have the panels attached on the short sides (with the panels in landscape orientation)—usually, those are 3-panel screens, so the finished product is 33" wide by 8.5" high. (You also occasionally see 4-panel landscape screens; those are 44" wide by 8.5" high, and they take up a lot of table area!)

Our 4 panel screen gives you 33% more room for reference material than 3 panels. (Actually, it's more like 36%: Since GMs usually have a bunch of stuff—minis, dice, etc.—right behind the screen, we design in a decent margin at the bottom so that your stuff won't obstruct the reference material too much; the area lost to this margin is higher for landscape than portrait.)

All dimensions in this post are approximate.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber
Vic Wertz wrote:
Damanta wrote:
Mine all mine...don't touch wrote:
Im guessing it isnt landscape though. This one looks nice but tall screens just dont work as well for me.
You want it 8 A5 sized stuck together instead of 4 A4? I can see the appeal of that yeah. It makes it less impersonal. I personally tend to have the GM screen off to my side when I use it (or not even set up at all).

Our screens are four 8.5x11" panels attached on the long sides (meaning the panels are in portrait orientation), making the finished product 34" wide and 11" high. Other screens have the panels attached on the short sides (the panels are in landscape orientation)—usually, those are 3-panel screens, so the finished product is 33" wide by 8.5" high. (You also occasionally see 4-panel landscape screens; those are 44" wide by 8.5" high, and they take up a lot of table area!)

Our 4 panel screen gives you 33% more room for reference material than 3 panels. (Actually, it's more like 36%: Since GMs usually have a bunch of stuff—minis, dice, etc.—right behind the screen, we design in a decent margin at the bottom so that your stuff won't obstruct the reference material too much; the area lost to this margin is higher for landscape than portrait.)

All dimensions in this post are approximate.

Despite this being portrait versus landscape, I *absolutely* appreciate the margin at the bottom. Just as you pointed out, I frequently have...stuff...at the bottom. The next thing I am hoping GM screen designers a lot for is a side "drink" margin...

Grand Lodge

I hope we get Subscription info soon! I'm from Europe and it's only worth for me to buy directly from Paizo with a Subscription discount.

I want to buy everything SF related (haha), so I'll need to know in time if I need to preorder with my local shop instead.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Varun Creed wrote:

I hope we get Subscription info soon! I'm from Europe and it's only worth for me to buy directly from Paizo with a Subscription discount.

I want to buy everything SF related (haha), so I'll need to know in time if I need to preorder with my local shop instead.

Preorder the heavy stuff (like the rulebook) at the store in Utrecht (you know which one). In my experience light books are the same price with the subscription discount when you include shipping costs, which makes an additional pdf effectively free of charge.

Shadow Lodge

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Wallpaper please!


Came for the artwork. Stayed for the artwork. Already preordered the SF CRB but will likely pick this up too.


Lazaro wrote:
Wallpaper please!

This.

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