BenS's page

I'm about 40 hours into the game and really, really enjoying it. The writing is superb, the voice acting great and entertaining, the story engaging, the combats & quests appealing, etc. There are a few things (graphics) I thought could be a little better (playing on an Xbox 360 if that matters) but overall I'm loving it.

I find the information you pick up on the world utterly captivating. The different human nations, the religious/political intrigues, heroic backstories, etc. The people who worked on this game's backstory obviously spent a lot of time reading through Dark Age and Middle Age European history, as there are subtle variations of historical names and conflicts throughout if you know what to look for. I love that depth. You can ignore all that if you don't want to spend the time reading through all the codex entries you chance upon, but to me, it's one of the most pleasurable parts of the game.

My guess will be that Bioware will have sequels but in different parts of the world (Ferelden is just one country after all); similar to The Elder Scrolls having one game in Morrowind (sp?) and the last game in (forget the name of the area). Can't wait.

My biggest problem now is figuring out how to make sure Wynne casts Revival when a comrade goes down. I can't find a tactic slot that = unconscious/dead.

Wow. Monte's doing a PF module?! Can't frickin' wait!

Editor take note:

Baroth wrote:

I hope that Todd will write a possible third book about Daemons. :-)

+1

Really looking forward to this book as well!

Another thing. Yes, allot of the people that like psionics like the point system. Unfortunately, they are not the largest market for the people that would buy it if the system was more easily integrated. Paizo's convenience is also a GM's convenience. Allot of GMs, including me, don't use psionics now, because it does not mesh well with core rules. the XPH is balanced. I don't buy this overpowered/underpowered argument. To me, if both arguments exist, then THAT is the best argument for overall balance. MY problem is the system does't play nice with core spellcasting. Not a power prblem, but a rules integration problem. Both systems need to be the same, for ease of use. Since the GM customers are a larger percentage of people that buy the MOST products, then they will target any product they make to the GMs more. It would suck to make this nifty product, but to realize that none of the GMs would use it.

I want to thank the tireless defenders for busting down the "overpowered" myths as fast as they spring up (too frequently). As for the "how integrated they are or are not" in the overall system, I can only speak from personal experience, and won't extrapolate from that more than necessary. I've been playing w/ a group of 5 characters--monk; cleric; psion; psychic warrior; soulknife--since 1st level. They just hit 17th level. I've had no problems interacting w/ arcane and divine magic types. None of my characters has consistently outshone any other (well, the 3.5 monk took a while to shine at all :-)). Rather, they each shine in the appropriate circumstances. That to me is balance, and on a personal note, an argument for how they are by and large balanced not only w/ each other, but the overall system. YMMV.

My suggestion for Paizo would be to forget about trying to integrate psionics into "the overall system" (e.g., NPCs in modules and adventure paths) if that means dispensing w/ the point-based system. We know there are areas (Vudra, Jalmeray IIRC, and the red & green planets) where psionics could be a mainstay attraction. Do a hardcover psionics book update and work it into coming attractions in Golarion like those cited above that will allow for the PF flavor enhancements to what would otherwise be a world-neutral book.

I just don't see the 2 sides in this debate coming together in the middle. And yet I read on in grim fascination. Keep in mind, folks, a lot of forum energy is being expended and Paizo might not even get to this for a couple of years. Not telling you what to post or not, just keeping this in perspective. I'll go back to lurking now...

Well, I got an email from customer service this was being cancelled from my longstanding orders b/c it's unavailable. So I guess that's one way to tell me to stop tilting at windmills...sniff.

Didn't even know this was coming out. I only read the last volume this summer, so it'll be relatively quick for me to catch up!

(And if you want to see it compiled and made cannon, like a lot of us do, mention it here, or start a new thread about it!)

BenS wrote:

Stormhierta wrote:

We're also gonna be replacing the Mind Flayers from the Bestiary section and I am thinking about introducing the Phrenic Scourge. Would people be interested in this? (Note: We've released a Scourge product and it originally came from Iconic Bestiary: Classics of Fantasy) If you were, I would most probably tie a few of the psionic creatures available together with the scourge, thematically.

Could you explain this a bit more? Is the idea that the Phrenic Scourge is a template? Or is it a thematic ur-creature? Or???

Phrenic Scourge

To answer the original question, I guess as long as we can't use Mind Flayers, the Phrenic Scourge is a halfway decent substitute. I'll be interested in tying other psionic creatures to them thematically at that point.

Creative Anomalies interviews Rite Publishing's Steve Russell for Small Press Week. The interview covers RiP's current, past, and future projects, as well as various inside aspects and motivations for the company's patronage projects.

Click here for the interview.

We're also gonna be replacing the Mind Flayers from the Bestiary section and I am thinking about introducing the Phrenic Scourge. Would people be interested in this? (Note: We've released a Scourge product and it originally came from Iconic Bestiary: Classics of Fantasy) If you were, I would most probably tie a few of the psionic creatures available together with the scourge, thematically.

Serpentmen: Done! They've got stats in "Into the Darklands," and are going to be a major element of an upcoming Adventure Path.

That cover is freakin' awesome. Love the pulp look! I also appreciate Paizo setting modules & PFS scenarios in areas/countries where there have been no adventure paths to date. Every little bit helps flesh out the world. Awesome.

And as a huge fan of both "The Styes" and its sequel, "The Weavers", I do hope you let Richard Pett come back for more.

Why was that thread locked, anyway?

BenS wrote:

Are we thinking color art, or b/w art like in past DP products? In either case, I hope you can get some fantastic artists, as that can make or break a product for me. Though I'll be getting this anyway, mediocre or bad art would partially sour the experience. So pre-orders + shoot for the moon!

Realistically speaking, given the cost of color art, to do the whole book in color would be cost prohibitive unless some nice artist just wants to basically give us artwork for free ;) Additionally, doing the printed book in color at our quantities would likely make it cost an arm and a leg... So, most likely B&W, but we're definitely going for quality graphics.

Using "Untapped Potential" as a guide, I would say most everything in there was halfway decent. If you can meet or even exceed that art, we'll be doing ok.

Nope, right now nothing new is planned for the series.

Well, once we have our Alpha a bit more worked out, we'll probably do pre-orders to help fund artwork.

Well, this group seems to be up on all things Anime, so I'll ask here: are we ever going to see any more Ghost in the Shell material?

I have the movies (1, 2, and Solid State Society) + the 1st 2 seasons of Stand Alone Complex. I thus don't need the "Laughing Man" or "Individual 11" movies, obviously. But it's been a few years now since the end of SAC 2nd Gig.

Anything new on the horizon?

FWIW, I emailed customer service at DriveThruRPG, and asked about a POD option for their pdfs. They told me it's in the works, but they can't commit to a firm date. Hope to have it ready by the end of the year.

So I still plan on getting this (and a few other NG items) once this happens.

James, when are we going to see you write the PFRPG equivalent of "Lord of the Scarlet Tide"? If you can do w/ Skum what you did back then w/ Kuo-Toa.../daydream (yes, I know you're too busy to write many adventures as EIC of PF).

In the mix of "short" free adventure pdfs I found a 67-page adventure called "The Thunder Below" written by James Jacobs, for 17th level characters. Sah-weet!

Wow, my web-fu was lacking! Thank you so much!

Thanks to you both, but I still can't find the actual adventures. Nothing more than some NPCs (Fight Club) and short site-based stuff (Vicious Venues). That's too bad.

I just went over there and spent half an hour. Nada. Either I'm an idiot, or they've hidden them really cleverly. Or in fact removed them.

Can anyone provide a hint or link? Thanks.

I think the whole "bonus + penalty" thing is a legacy issue from 1st edition artifacts and onwards. Which I always disliked.

Not sure what an ideal replacement to the WoL book would be, but it sorely needs reworking.

One idea would be a version of a Runeblade (?) class, a type of Gish that, as s/he gains new levels and access to more powerful runes, would be able to empower the weapon as such. Again, the basic pattern of the Soulknife gives me some good ideas.

Well, in GH terms he's a "hero-deity" (step before demigod), so there's no reason he can't wander Oerth (i.e., the Prime Material).

Since he's true Neutral, if he was in the Outer Planes, I don't think Asgard would be a good fit. Either the Outlands (N) or, as has been suggested, a demi-plane always works.

** spoiler omitted **

David,

I like what you're doing here. If you haven't already checked them out, there are 2 issues of Dragon you might find useful:
#337 "The Ecology of Shadar-Kai" & #322 "Lord of Darkness: Erebus, The Void Between the Stars" (as a Zon-Kuthon analog).

My only suggestion would be to use "svartalfar" for the plural, and "svartalf" for the singular (and technically it would be "svartalfr", but the other example is more recognizable to a modern audience). If we can learn the difference between the Slaadi and a Slaad, we can handle that ;-)

I like this idea. I've certainly played enough Japanese RPG's where this was a given. I'm not sure I'd use the exact mechanics of the WOTC book, but the basic idea--weapons that level up and improve alongside their bearer--is a good one.

The 3.5 Soulknife from EPH has this ability to a degree already, in fact.

I'll be doing something along these lines next year when I roll up a new character w/ a special connection to his sword.

BenS wrote:

If you are talking about a different language than Old Norse, that still doesn't make the word ironic.

Unless I'm talking about Proto-Indo-European. Which I am. ;)

Sorry for the continued threadjack folks.

David Fryer wrote:

FYI Svartalfar is the Norse word for Black Elf.

...and "alf" means "white." I actually clicked this thread just to point out that irony, glad to see you're on top of it. ;)

"Alfr" is either a personal name or the nominative singular form of the word for "elf"; "alfar" being the nominative plural. Elf /= "white".

If you are talking about a different language than Old Norse, that still doesn't make the word ironic.

There is irony in the word, but it's in the fact that it can be used for a "dwarf" in Old Norse.

Also, Is their an etemylogical relationship between Svartalfar and Xvart?

I'm amazed they still have some of these left. It's a great product, and $5 is a steal. Hell, the cover art by James Ryman for the boxed set is worth that.

Um, does this mean there is no print version available? B/c I'm not sure I'd get this if it was pdf only (sorry Greg!).

Wow, that does put things in perspective. Glad to hear you're ok.

When you get the time, put up a list of what you lost, and I'm sure the community can help you replace at least some of it.

Looks like my group (36-45) is kicking ass and taking numbers!

Now all you damn kids, stay offa my...wait, what were we talking about?

Race for the Crystal Fold Patronage Project (22,000 words, estimated 40 pages) is a 3rd level adventure for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved, it is now open and seeking patrons. You can find out more by visiting our website.

These existing products are also available via the PAIZO STORE

Thank you for your time.

(Ducks as something sharp and heavy is thrown at my head. /inside joke)

That's a cool cover, and I'm excited to get this AP moving along. Patron out.

BenS wrote:

And they can be found in the last part of the ** spoiler omitted **

This is doubly interesting, because Downer artist Kyle Hunter actually designed the "look" of the ethergaunts. I described to him what I was seeing in my diseased brain, and he did a sketch that we provided to our handlers at WotC, who then provided it to the artist who did the final piece (a dude named Puddinhead, if I remember correctly).

I told the story once on my old blog, which is now readable only via archive.org.

Here it is!

Sadly, Kyle's original drawing is no longer available.

Yeah my silly brain still thinking in 3.5 terms, will take a while to get full mastery down (goes to shoot the editor and the proofreader now, hehehe)
(Does the happy dance of joy).

Anyone remember the Ethergaunts from...I think the MM2? Those were amazing mid-level bad guys. I had a lot of fun as a DM involving their rather sneaky genocide return storyline in one of my games.

Nick Logue wrote that great adventure w/ Ethergaunts & Nerra--"Mask of Diamond Tears"--if anyone's interested in seeing them in a published adventure.

And they can be found in the last part of the

On topic, I like "The Dark Tapestry" answer, and of course the oldest parts of the Abyss work great too.

So, I looked today at my subscription page and it shows:

Quote:

October 2009
1x Pathfinder Chronicles: Seekers of Secrets—A Guide to the Pathfinder Society (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Chronicles: Princes of Darkness—Book of the Damned Volume 1 (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary (OGL) Hardcover

November 2009
1x Pathfinder Chronicles: Cities of Golarion (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Chronicles: City Map Folio
1x Pathfinder Adventure Path #27: What Lies in Dust (Council of Thieves 3 of 6) (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Roleplaying Game GM Screen (OGL)
1x Pathfinder Companion: Dwarves of Golarion (PFRPG)

December 2009
1x Pathfinder Companion: Andoran, Spirit of Liberty (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Chronicles: Classic Horrors Revisited (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Chronicles: Guide to the River Kingdoms (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Adventure Path #28: The Infernal Syndrome (Council of Thieves 4 of 6) (PFRPG)
1x Pathfinder Adventure Path #29: Mother of Flies (Council of Thieves 5 of 6) (PFRPG)

It seems that the Screen and the PF 27 are delayed. While it does make the October package less costly, I'm curious as to what caused the slip ?

It seems Todd is the only one giving Axiomites love, this is very very sad!

Axiomites are great, and too me, the guts of Axis.

I really, really hope they are in Bestiary II!

Anyway, I've already posted there, but I'd prefer more work on the Axiomites as the LN iconic race, than expanding the Inevitables. But I'll certainly w/hold judgment until I've seen what Paizo does w/ the constructs.

BenS wrote:

James Jacobs wrote:

The LN inevitables, the CN proteans (since we can't use slaadi), the NG agathions (since we can't use the word guardinal, but this is where the leonal lives), and the NE daemons are not in the first Bestiary. They'll be along soon enough, along with a brand new race of neutral outsiders we aren't yet ready to talk about...

I understand how the Inevitables of 3rd edition "replaced" the Modrons of earlier editions as the LN iconics. But as has been pointed out before, they're not really a race, are they?

They're constructs that come from the LN plane. While I quite enjoy them, here's my vote for taking the ball and running on the excellent work Todd did on the Axiomites in The Great Beyond. No reason PF can't "replace" the Inevitables; or at least de-emphasize them.

Actually... they ARE a race. As much as demons and angels and devils are. There are several different types and they all share similar traits, just like all the other outsider races. The fact that inevitables are constructs and not outsiders doesn't matter too much, since they don't really function like most constructs what with their intelligence and society and all. In fact, I personally think they work better as outsiders but with construct traits...

Axiomites are certainly a cool idea, and they're definately a race of outsiders, but they aren't as much a "type" of outsider like demon and devil and archon are. They're not set up in the same way, with the name "axiomite" as a race name with multiple different categories that share similar traits. Inevitables are.

Nothing I can't homebrew, though. Thanks for the response.

The LN inevitables, the CN proteans (since we can't use slaadi), the NG agathions (since we can't use the word guardinal, but this is where the leonal lives), and the NE daemons are not in the first Bestiary. They'll be along soon enough, along with a brand new race of neutral outsiders we aren't yet ready to talk about...

They're constructs that come from the LN plane. While I quite enjoy them, here's my vote for taking the ball and running on the excellent work Todd did on the Axiomites in The Great Beyond. No reason PF can't "replace" the Inevitables; or at least de-emphasize them.

Flavor?

If you were ever a fan of Planescape or the planes in general, then you owe it to yourself to get a copy of The Great Beyond. It doesn't get any better than that...

I absolutely would buy all 9 books in this series (covering each alignment's iconic races)!

I think Paizo should greenlight the whole series at a faster pace than you might currently envision, too. There's a lot of Planescape fans among your fans. Don't make us wait years and years for this stuff!

You could also cover the 3 good & neutral alignments in one large book. In fact, I think this would be a safer sales strategy. We all know the 3 evil alignment books will sell well, but it's an open question if the others--sold individually--would do as well. So package deals might work best for them. Of course, this also serves my strategy of getting this material sooner rather than later, but I assure you my point remained objective ;-)

EDIT: 1 book for the good races, 1 book for the neutral races.

Templar will be an alternate build for Paladins of other alignments (not LG or CE) allowing deities of other alignments to have their holy warriors.

I also like more details on the Summoner, which I predicted I'd like; the Witch could be very cool if implemented correctly; and the mechanics of the Oracle sound interesting, even if I'm not sold on the name of the class.

I love these GH-Golarion crossovers!

Right up there w/ those wacky Tharizdun cultists w/ the Codex of the Infinite Planes-storyline.

You might think about posting this in the Dungeon magazine forums...

Alright, I know this probably doesn't belong in a book titled (insert anything) Player's Guide, but something I would REALLY like to see somebody produce, is an alternate wealth system.

A system where prices scale linearly, and where high level characters don't require this absurd amount of monetary value that makes no logical sense.

Seriously, who would pay a whole ship-full of gold for a single +10 total value sword?

It just doesn't make sense and feels awkward. I understand Pathfinder had to stick close to the OGL content for marketing reasons, but as an alternate option it would be really nice to have a more realistic economy, where a +2 value sword costs twice as much as a +1, and a +3 value sword costs three times as much, etc.

(Also, this helps to keep the party on a level of reasonable wealth where they aren't, for reasons beyond all logic or understanding, more wealthy than some countries.)

1) Tithing; whether to churches of your elected deity, or to rulers of your home country, or even to guild masters;

2) Training; I have a lot of skills that can be increased through time & training, which solves 2 problems for me: too much cash available, and too few skill points available for most classes (though PFRPG has helped this somewhat w/ skill consolidations). I even allow training for attribute increases (what could be more realistic, actually), w/in limits.

These could be optional suggestions for players worried about too much wealth (stop laughing), and the training options would be great for further customizing their characters but w/out adding too much power to them. Another benefit of raising attributes through training is that helps me stave off the need to look like the magic item Xmas tree.

Thanks for the suggestions. Looks like my PC's have another fiend to worry about now...

When fighting a demon (say, Marilith) that summons another demon (say, Nalfeshnee) to the battle, when the original demon summoner (Marilith) is dispatched, does the summoned demon disappear or remain behind for the duration of the spell?