Wouldn't it be nice if we could just purchase a book filled with monsters all with a simimlar theme? IE: Outer Planes, Desert, Underwater, Mythic, Arthurian, Wilderness, Fey, Lovecraftian, etc, etc (list is endless). I would know that this is a monster manual I would use all the creatures in, Paizo would make more money, I would use more than eight creatures in my games in the book I purchased, those running specific campaigns would have their needs met. At present I need to search through each book to find a specific creature (ie Gem Dragon) or whatever... now let me see, which one was that in again? Oh, hand me that Dragon Beastiary so I can pull out that creature. It is time to reimagine some of the low level challenges, I am going to be sick if I have to use another, skeleton, Zombie, Kobold, Orc or Goblin for that new party challenge.
The haunts idea was classic and original and has MAJOR possibility for continued advncement. They could be used like traps and challenges which did not have a horror theme and could really break the tired but reliable Beastiary. The guy which came up with that idea was thinking outside the box and really hit on something bigger than many realize that could make the game go in so many really interesting directions. The other aspect of the game which has was really advanced and has major uses even outside what it was used for was the the kingdom making rules which could also be useful beyond their current use. So many great ideas but not being used to their fullest. Naturally the advntures they were attached to were great sellers but it reminds me of having a rocket ship you are only using to make quick trips to the grocery store with, as if we are unwilling to use great ideas to the fullest. Legendary creatures would be nice, but I havn't had a single character in any game I have ever run advance far enough to ever really fight one of those. I and my players have always felt that starting a character higher than 1st level was cheating the system or lessening their achievements somehow. I enjoy reading adventures with high level characters and dreaming of the day I actually had a single party member in over thirty years of playing the various versions of this game get that high. With the million dice rolled at the table the odds are remote at best for survival. The very reason we all play and love Pathfinder is exactly because it most closely represents the game as it has been played since the late seventies. You can absolutely never make everyone happy from the old beat up gamer to the rug rat and everyone inbetween will have their own best interest in mind. So instead of giving us a choice of monsters inside the Beastiary make those same Beastiaries exclusive and give us a choice of which ones we might like to purchase. IE... woodlands Beastiary might have enough monsters inside to run an exclusive wilderness campaign from 1st to 20 level.. but if you wanted to add underwater stuff or whatever, you would need the other Beastiary. It sure takes away the mess of trying to make everyone happy with a single book.
Keep it up Pathfinder don't be afraid to push the bubble, but don't get to cocky either, the game will survive you also just as WOC discovered. You are the caretakers not the owners, that belongs to all of us that have been doing this for decades longer than the company existed. Don't become an MMO (let Goblin Works do that), support and lend them your name, but do not divert your fantastic resources to that endeavor and forget that it is, and always has bbeen the guys playing at night together at home that makes this the best game in the world not a computer which is used mainly for the quick reference at the table, the mapper has an easier job than in the late seventies. I know all won't share my opinion, but let me assure you the sales results and accurate research will do that for everyone in the end. You have some real stars in the gaming enterprise including the greatest female gamer of all time running your ship but develope those other guys as there is a substaintial fall off from your top six or eight to the next tier. A lot of them need extra help learning the hobby and the fantasy writing style. The new gamers learned from us (the mothers and fathers of them) To them growing up Gygax was not just a guy that might have had something to do with creating an MMO (as is commonly thought umoung the uninformed) and it is those guys buying your written products. Like the Roman victors of old riding with the slave whispering warnings that all glory is fleeting, make smart choices, so far you have.
