Balah's page

Hello all good folk of Taldor and the Pathfinder Society,

I, the Viscount Ottavio Emilior, would like to share some of my good fortune with you. I have recently return from some challenging and exciting adventures in distant lands. I will say no more until I see you in person. It has been my good fortune to return richer in both experience and wealth from these adventures and therefore i plan a celebration.

My apologies to all of those who feel that in my absence I have neglected their friendship. Nothing could be further from the truth and now that I have returned alive and good good spirits I am most eager to spend much time with all of those who would call themselves my friends.

So I am extending an invitation to this celebration of my good fortune to all my friends from Taldor and elsewhere, especially those who I have met in my times around the Pathfinder Society. The invitation is following. Believe me this celebration will be as extravagant as only a Taldan Viscount can provide.

If you have any questions, concerns or require special arrangements then please share your thoughts with myself or one of my companions. I will entertain any suggestions, but make no promises. There are certain considerations that you should look over before you reply to my invitation with acceptance.

Yours most respectfully

Viscount Ottavio Emilior

Please note - This is just a good fun excuse to chat. There is no actual celebration out of game.

The race traits in Humans of Golarion give the races as the racial group - Chelaxian for example. Does that mean that only Chelaxian Humans can take that trait? What about a Chelaxian Half-Orc?

The trait I am interested in is Operatic (from Humans of Golarion) for a Half-Orc bard. Nice trait. But is it legal for a non-human (or half-human) of Chelaxian blood.

Hi all

There is a player in our group who uses a Scorpion Whip. The description in UC is quite vague about its use.

Some players suggest that Exotic Wpn Prof - Whip is enough to use either Whip or Scorpion WHip. Others say that if you have Exotic Wpn Prof - Scorpion WHip you can use it as a 5' reach 1D4 weapon with the performance special and you can only unlock the 15' range and trip etc by also taking Exotic Wpn Prof - Whip.

Two feats or one. I'm confused and have to GM this player soon. I've looked back over old threads and found no clear answer to how this weapon works.

Cheers

Deluge

I have played a number of PFS games recently and found them to be very much different from the games that we played in the early years of PFS. Some aspects of these games are making it more difficult to play and run the games and have fun. I have not mentioned anything here about this, but now I feel I have too. I was waiting to see if the next game would be better. And the next and so on.

Firstly – The encounters are ridiculously tough. I don’t believe that the last five mods that I have played at Tier 1-5 could be successfully completed with a team of 1st level adventurers. This is a problem because the new players play 1st level characters (often the iconics). It seem to me that games need to be playtested against a team of 4 (or maybe 5) iconics and the iconics should win 90% of the time. They don’t! In fact some of the games (the last five I have played) could never be completed successfully with a group of 1st level iconics. TPK in these mods ends up with the players not returning and GMs not wanting to GM games where they think they’ll just destroy another adventuring group. The GMs feel that they have responsibility for the outcome. It all just creates bad feeling in an environment where we want the players to have an awesome experience.

Secondly – The games that I have played recently seem to lack in the plot department. I really hate to say this, because I have loved my PFS, but I think that the overwhelming encounters are also overwhelming the plot. Players are struggling to find any in game character motivation. It is hard for a short adventure to create a plot that will engage the players for the length of the scenario, but I feel that there has been a deterioration of plots in recent times. Many games just seem to be - go from encounter 1 to 2 and so on. There have been chases (which are odd) and investigation (which is sometimes good), but overall plot seem to be coming a distant second to challenge. And don't get me wrong I want some challenge too, but I crave plot (both as GM and player).

Thirdly – Faction missions seem unnecessary now. They seem to be getting the players to do something for no particular reason. In early seasons players would sit at the table before a game and discuss their support for their faction. They would entertain themselves before the game with in character chat and teasing about one faction or another. This doesn’t seem to happen any more. The faction talk at our tables seems to have died down, and I think that faction mission completion has become a little cared for bother to be added to a game. Things that are done because there is a benefit, not just for love of the faction. Don’t get me wrong, I love the factions in PFS (or I did), but I think their flavor and the way they are done is killing them. I do think that the number of factions has changed things, but also the fact that once all of the factions had an interconnection. Now some have no real connection.

I am writing this because I care about the game. I hate to give such negative feedback, but I mean it all, and I feel that if I don’t things will not change. The 1st level problem is a very serious one. Perhaps a special starting character Tier needs to be created. Currently I would say that Tier 1-2 is a myth. It is really Tier 2 and if you play with a team of first level characters then bad luck. Remember that all of the starting characters and players will be 1st level. We need them in our game. The characters in the game are the focus and they are expected to beat the baddies most of the time. Please don't suggest running First Steps for the starting characters. I think we are all bored with these games. Tier 1-2 games need to be ok to play with a group of 1st levels. Otherwise back to the drawing board.

I really am a keen PFS fan and have played since the beginning of the campaign, but right now I am not keen to GM, because I hate to murder the party, and playing has not been much fun either. I have discussed this with other players and our local VC and while I don’t want to speak for them, I think that there is a lot of the same feeling.

Regards

Disillusioned PFS fan

My countrymen and countrywomen, my friends, I call to you and request your help with a straightforward task. I would like to discuss with you all that is iconically Taldan - the things that make Taldor great. Perhaps I will compile it into a tome (not to be licked) for the benefit of both current and future generations.

If I might start off, I am something of a swordsman, and I would mention the Falcata. It is a sword design so unique that no nation has developed one better. The weight and balance and style and form of the Falcata is unmatched.
And the style of it's use with a buckler is also Taldan. The Rondelero style is a popular one although personally I have developed my own which I have named the Emilior style in honour of my family. The Falcata seems well paired with a Buckler and while a buckler might not be iconically Taldan, the pair of Falcata and Buckler I would say is.
Then I think of the wigs of Taldor. A wig is an item of high fashion and provides an opportunity to wear ones hair in the latest style even if one has none. Other nations have wigs, but they are not so vital an item of clothing and styling as in Taldor.
The ways of Aroden perhaps are iconically Taldan since his ways have been forgotten in many lesser nations (and perhaps were never known in some others). If I sought a god who defined what is Taldor more than any other, then I think I would choose Aroden.

So my friends, what else sets us apart form the others. What makes Taldor the great nation on the rise that it is? What defines Taldor? What are our strengths? And to be fair, what are our weaknesses? (my never ending oration for one)

Yours iconically
Viscount Ottavio Emilior of Cassomir
Lover of Taldan culture, language and tradition
Admirer of Taldan beauty in its people, its landscapes and its cities
Believer that Taldor is eternal and touched by glory

Greeting all fellow Qadirans.

I am pleased to meet you. I have introduced myself, but for any late comers, my name is Samur Scarring and I am an Ulfen man who, in truth, is something of an exile from the Ulfen people and when joining the Pathfinder society, I came to ally myself with the Qadiran cause.
Now to be clear, I am no saint, but I am not an evil man. I am a summoner, but I swing a battleaxe and enjoy the company of my friend and eidolon, Howlfur. Now that I have all of that out of the way, let me say also, that I am in the pay of Qadira. I choose Qadira because I hear that they pay well.
Don't be critical of this. I could serve the Taldans and their ruler in their Ulfen guard, but I never would. I could serve the Chelaxian mistress if kinkiness was my passion. Fanatical freedom would be the way of Andorans, and if the eternal something or other dead was my whim I would serve the Osirions. Gold is simple and honest in a strange way. I know where I stand.
So I have tried to embrace Qadira and visit Katheer. Truthfully I find the weather a bit much, but I'm getting used to it. The food and the aromas of Katheer are not always to my liking either. Perhaps I will open up a Northern food restaurant (but I don't think there would be much call for it). I have learnt something of appraising the value of things which is more interesting than I first thought. And then it came to me - where does the money actually come from?
How is there always money to pay me? Is it taxation on every sale made? What is the basis of the Qadiran economy? It had never struck me as important until I began to learn Qadiran ways, but now? Will the money ever run out? Is a "crash" coming? What thoughts are these for an Ulfen warrior you might say, but I am now an adopted Qadiran and a Trade Prince. So tell me more of this place and I will pay you for your time.

May golden coins always pour from your purse.

Samur Scarring
Traveller, Lover of Coin and Dabbler in Trade
Man who pays homage to both Erastil and Sarenrae for they are great

Since the release of the Pathfinder Society Field Guide (which is excellent IMHO) Cheliax faction members can purchase ranks in the Hellknights with their PP. The Hellknight Prestige class seems to imply that Hellknight Armor can't be purchased until 2nd level in that prestige class. In the Faction Guide there is provision for someone with the rank Hellknight to buy Hellknight Armor. Is it reasonable to assume that if you achieve Hellknight Rank in the Cheliax faction Fame awards then you can purchase it even if you have no levels in the prestige class?
I'm not sure if this has been discussed elsewhere, but is there a rule for Pathfinder Society with regard to rank in the Hellknights and being able to buy and wear Hellknight armor (at least legally within Cheliax law)?

I just tried the faction link near the additional resources link and see that it only shows the five older factions. Nothing on the new factions yet. I just wondered if this was an oversight.

Hi all

I have no idea what might have been said in the past on this topic.

In PFS, why don't Animal Companions and Eidolons use the same formula as characters for hit points? I have just been reading the FAQ on this issue.

Average hit points is ok, but involves a half point every second level. Obviously this sort of thing has been avoided for characters' hit points to make things simple.

To be clear, I am not suggesting that these creatures should have max hit points at first level, but that the hit points be calculated without the 0.5 so that it is the same amount to be added each level. Table 2-2 in the Guide to Organised Play shows the way of course.

To my thinking, in an organised play campaign, simplicity is the best way to avoid confusion. If it is simplified for characters, why not simplify in the same way for companions.

Recently I have heard a few things from people on these forums regarding Alignment and Evil Acts in PFS. The rules clearly state that characters cannot be of Evil alignment, but I have not really found a statement about Evil Acts. Alignment is a blurry concept and the rules suggest that it shouldn't be a staightjacket, but where are the lines with regard to PFS?
At a table of PFS that I GMed recently I felt that it was necessary to speak with a player about his actions after the game and in the end I wrote a note on a chronicle sheet mentioning that his character had performed a cruel act. I chose my words carefully, but I meant it to show to a GM in the future (if they ever read over his chronicle sheets) that if he continues down this path then his character is (in effect) of evil alignment which is not within the rules of PFS.
I'm sure that many of us have come across characters committing evil acts in game as both players at the table or as GMs and I wondered what opinions were on this contentious subject. For example, is it an evil act to cast a spell with the evil descriptor? How many evil acts are able to be overlooked. What, as a GM should I do? It was definitely causing trouble at the table that I spoke about. Other players were finding the game less enjoyable because of it.

I wonder how popular the Taldan weapon style of Falcata and Buckler is out there amongst players. Also there is a weapon style archetype called Rondelero in the Inner Sea Primer and I wondered if anyone had created a character with this style.
I think the Falcata is a pretty darn good weapon with the crit range of 19-20/x3, but it takes an Exotic Weapon feat. Also it is the traditional weapon of Taldor according to the old Campaign Setting book, but this does not seem to be mentioned in the newer Inner Sea Primer and the Inner Sea World Guide.
So, Taldor people, how popular is the Falcata out there?

I was wondering how people deal with situations at the table.
In a game recently, my character of good alignment had to deal with another player wanting to hit an NPC in an encounter after we had seemingly determined that the combat that had occured up till then was due to a misunderstanding. He seemed to justify his action by, well I have been hit and hurt so I should be allowed to hit back. To my character (and me) this seemed callous and unneccesary. He just wanted to hit because it is a game and hitting is a mechanic.
Of course, I like to play to role-play my character and my good-aligned character was not comfortable with his actions. In fact my character felt that they were borderline evil-actions. The NPC was by no means innocent, but the combat was really over at this stage, so hitting him was just gratuitous.
I am likely to play another game with the same player in a week (with the same characters). Obviously player (internal) conflicts occur, but if my good character continues to accept this and adventure with characters who act callously (maybe almost evilly) then I'm really not role-playing anymore. I think I will accept most things at the table, but if I role-play a character who beleives life has value and others around just slaughter without concern then I may as well just have a list of statistics in front of me and join the slaughter without characterisation.
I'm really just sharing experiences here, but I wondered what others have to say.

The new Inner Sea World Guide is great in appearance and in the material that it contains. Still, I have a question based on what I read there.
Bonus languages for non-humans are extremely limited and this becomes awkward to deal with in the Inner Sea when national languages are not available as Bonus Languages to non-humans. So a Osirian Dwarf can't speak Osirian, a Qadiran Halfling can't speak Kelish and so on unless the character takes a point in Linguistics.
The new Inner Sea World Guide gives a list of Languages for each nation or region. What are these languages for? Could these be considered as an addition to the racial Bonus Languages for a character (especially a non-human) to select using their Intelligence score if it is high enough. That way a Dwarf from Osirion with an Intelligence of 12 or higher could select Osirion as a Bonus Language at 1st level without using a skill point on Linguistics.
The way the languages are now, non-humans have some problem integrating language-wise into the human-centric Golarion since national languages (since they are setting based) are not included in the Core-rulebook.
This becomes frustrating for me with a Mordant Spire Elf character of mine. As the Inner Sea World guide says "Generally refusing to speak anything but Azlanti with outsiders" and yet a Mordant Spire Elf character can only choose Azlanti as a language by taking a point in Linguistics. If the Languages from the Steaming Sea region could be taken as Bonus Languages then any Mordant Spire Elf character with Intelligence of 12 or higher could speak Azlanti more easily.
Obviously in a home game I can ask the GM for this sort of thing no problem, but my enquiry is focused at the Pathfinder Society Organised Play Campaign. So what to others think?

I am creating an Pathfinder Society Elf character who I imagined would come from Mordant Spire - it has a nice feel to it (Incidentally I think the Elves of Golarion book is very good). I read in Elves of Golarion that Elves from Mordant Spire are Gray Elves.
The Guide to organised play suggests that only races from the PH are used. So am I correct in assuming that I should create an Elf as per the PH, but I'll call him a Gray Elf? Rather than use the Gray Elf modifiers in the MM p104.
If this is so, then is that the same for all races in the Pathfinder Society game so far?