Darkjoy's page

I spent a day working on an idea, liked it very much and then a friend shot it down.

Thought up a new one, drawing upon stuff I had done before and spent about 2 days on it.

I only start designing when the contest starts, spending 9 months crafting the perfect entry is not what Superstar is about. Quick turnover is key here, otherwise you will make top 32 and stay top 32.

An achievement nonetheless, but not the end goal.

Part II

ETA: Thanks Mark.

Get Gavin, before he gets you!

This time, trading with the dead.

It's so quiet in here you could hear a drow stalk...

--Vrock'em Sock'em Robots

I blame the no comment rule. This year diifers from previous years in the number of comments. Or, maybe the competition's biggest supporters are now its competitors ;-)

New strip is up!

cleric beat down

"Then die"

Rich never disappoints ;>

Thank you Mark,

This time, seasonal solutions (slightly late).

Maurice, I can see a lot of love/hate for this monster in the thread, and I agree. With all of it.

The above was my favorite.

I too noticed the love and the hate that the leechlorn inspires and thinking about it, in the end I just celebrated the effect my writing had on the posters – any response is better than no response!

That said, I still firmly believe that the leechlorn is a CR 3 monster. Is it tough? Yes it is, but tough encounters define characters more than pushover encounters and the leechlorn requires that the characters switch gears. Maybe it is too complex, maybe not.

I really hope that one of my brave competitors picks the leechlorn as his encounter monster so a playtest can determine if its assigned CR is correct or not. However, picking the leechlorn would be a bold choice and I suspect that it won’t be picked due to its controversial nature.

If you voted for the leechlorn, then you have my thanks.

If you hated it, run it against your group, maybe it will change your mind. Either way, your players will remember the leechlorn and in the end, I think that is enough for me.

I think Maurice will LOVE the trap twist.

I do have some proficiency with traps.........

and

Called it!

Buttons I've pushed:

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Rising from the water, this thin, headless, vaguely humanoid creature advances with a swerving gait, as it stretches its maw-tipped arms towards you.
Leechlorn CR 3
XP 800
CE Medium aberration (aquatic)
Init +2; Senses blindsight 30 ft.; Perception +1
Aura unnatural aura (30 ft.)
----- Defense -----
AC 13, touch 12, flat-footed 11 (+2 Dex, +1 natural)
hp 37 (5d8+15); fast healing 2
Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +5
Defensive Abilities fractured souls; DR 5/slashing
----- Offense -----
Speed 20 ft., swim 30 ft.
Melee 2 bites +5 (1d6 plus attach)
Special Attacks blood drain (1d2 Constitution), soul eater, soul spittle
----- Statistics -----
Str 11, Dex 15, Con 15, Int 5, Wis 12, Cha 10
Base Atk +3; CMB +3 (+11 when attached); CMD 15 (19 vs. trip)
Feats Lightning Reflexes, Toughness, Weapon Finesse
Skills Stealth +10 (+18 in swamps), Swim +8; Racial Modifiers +8 Stealth in swamps
Languages Common
SQ amphibious, bloated, blood pool, the blood remembers
----- Ecology -----
Environment rivers, temperate marshes
Organization solitary, family (2-5)
Treasure none
----- Special Abilities -----
Attach (Ex) When a leechlorn hits with a bite attack, it latches onto its target and automatically grapples. The leechlorn loses its Dexterity bonus to AC and has an AC of 11, but holds on with great tenacity and automatically inflicts bite damage each round.
Bloated (Ex) When a leechlorn has 6 or more blood points in its blood pool, its form becomes bloated, this effect is similar to an enlarge person spell. The bloated condition ends after 1 hour.
Blood Pool (Ex) A leechlorn maintains a pool of blood points: one point of blood drained Constitution equals one blood point. Spending blood points is a standard action.
Fractured Souls (Ex) A leechlorn houses many souls, it cannot be the target of single target spells.
Soul Eater (Su) An attached leechlorn feeds on its foe’s soul. It drains 1d3 Charisma unless the target succeeds on a DC 12 Will save. This is a Charisma-based DC.
Soul Spittle (Su) A leechlorn can, as a standard action, regurgitate fragments of the souls it has consumed, this has an unsettling effect on those struck by the soul fragment unless they succeed on a DC 14 Will save, treat as a lesser confusion spell. This is a Constitution-based DC.
The Blood Remembers (Su) By spending one blood point, a leechlorn can gain any ability named in the beast shape I spell if a blood drain victim had it. This effect lasts for 10 minutes.

First sighted on the banks of the Mesmos River, near the Vaishau ruins, leechlorn have migrated far and wide and fishermen quickly learn to bring pets on their fishing trips whenever a leechlorn stalks the land.

Decidedly unnatural in their origins, sages speculate that its form is dictated by the remnants of the souls it has eaten. This hypothesis would certainly explain the raw cunning leechlorn possess. Leechlorn understand Common and agreements can be reached, but leechlorn only accept blood as currency; this can be a deal breaker for the other party.

Leechlorn typically stand 6 feet tall, but weigh less than 80 pounds. Its black, leathery, segmented body blends extremely well in the dark, murky waters it favors. Leechlorn are primarily ambush predators, but some leechlorn cunningly use their blood remembers ability for surprisingly direct assaults. Fast and tenacious, leechlorn trust in their natural resilience to see them through a fight.

Leechlorn reproduction only occurs after the leechlorn has feasted on several souls. The resulting offspring typically remains with its parent, forming a family that hunts and feeds together.

Death to wizards!

And here we go, it's in.

Something I've learned over the past few days is that being top 32 is not the same as wanting to be top 32. I feel a lot of pressure to not f!+% it up.

Anyone else feel the same way?

Wandering Judge (Ranger)
The wild lands of the River Kingdoms know no common law, only the Six River Freedoms.
Wandering judges are rangers that police the far stretching countryside of the various River Kingdoms. The six freedoms guide and ultimately empower their judgments and pursuits. Wandering judges track down thieves and slay slavers as they travel from one kingdom to another. Wandering judges uphold the law of the land or choose to travel further if that law does not agree with them. Their word is their bond and they are not afraid to speak their minds.

A few wandering judges serve in the Black Eagles of Lambreth, some are knights of Touvette and others protect fledgling Liberthane.

Class Skills: A wandering judge gains Sense Motive as a class skill.
Manhunter (Ex): At 1st level, a wandering judge must select humanoid (human) as his favored enemy.
Sound Judgment (Ex): At 1st level, a wandering judge gains a +2 bonus on Sense Motive checks. This ability replaces wild empathy.
Posse (Ex): At 4th level, if the wandering judge chooses to bond with his companions, he can, as a move action, grant half his favored enemy bonus against a single target of the appropriate type to all allies within 30 feet who can see or hear him. This bonus lasts for a number of rounds equal to the wandering judge’s Wisdom modifier (minimum 1). This bonus does not stack with any favored enemy bonuses possessed by his allies; they use whichever bonus is higher. At 10th level, this ability allows a wandering judge to grant half his judgment’s sacred or profane bonus to all allies within 30 feet. This ability alters the hunter's bond class feature.
Law of the Land (Su): At 5th level, a wandering judge gains the ability to pronounce judgment, as the inquisitor class feature, but his inquisitor level is considered to be his ranger level –4. This replaces the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th favored enemy abilities.
Justice (Ex): At 11th level, whenever a wandering judge uses his judgment ability, he selects two different judgments, instead of one. This only consumes one use of his judgment ability. As a swift action, a wandering judge can change one of these judgments to another type. This ability replaces the quarry ability.
Greater Justice (Ex): At 19th level, whenever a wandering judge uses his judgment ability, he selects three different judgments, instead of just two. This only consumes one use of his judgment ability. As a swift action, a wandering judge can change one of these judgments to another type. This ability replaces the improved quarry ability.

JBE would like to congratulate Maurice de Mare, a contributor to Book of Magic: Pirate Spells, is one of the new Pathfinder RPG Superstar Top 32. Congratulations good sir and the best of luck to you.

Don't forget about Fatespinner. He made it too.

ETA: thanks Dale, your open call kickstarted a new breath of creativitty.

A surgeon's tools in the hands of a trapsmith: bloody mayhem ensues.

Join the trapsmith challenge: submit 4 items and gain a trap for free!

Superstars create items that are easy to use.

The thesaurus is your friend, as a writer I use it all the time. 13 year old comprehension (PG 13?) is a good level to write for.

So yeah, if all things are equal those 3 words could tip the scales.

After having seen my item a couple days ago, I have not seen it since and am now hoping it was not in the 25% culling ...

I just saw an item I have voted down 9 times, haven't seen my item since the culling, but I want some assurance because if some of the bad items made it and mine didn't.....

shudders

Paizo, thanks for listening.

Items that cost more than 50,000 gp and provide nothing interesting for that amount of gold.

That drives me bonkers.

Paizo hear my plea! For years I’ve entered this competition and heard that judging was hard. Now I know that judging is hard. I’ve seen the horrible, uninspired submissions that you have seen and now I know and share your pain.

So please Paizo, end our suffering and cut the bottom 33% after one week of voting. And one week after that event cut another 33%.

Maybe it is too soon, but after spending a combined 12 hours judging pairs and finding only 2 items that were superstar, I think and hope that removing the bottom 33% will keep the voting fresh for the remaining voting period.

Saw it, liked how it looked and it sure beat the crappy gloves that it was up against.

I ended up voting for it.

Don't vote neither. Neither means we have to judge the pairing. So bite the bullet and judge.

I am automatically voting against "Walkie-talkies" - items that allow players to communicate over distance. Well, I was until I saw two of those items against one another...

I've seen them too and a fax machine as well.....

There is also one particular entry that just keeps coming back for more rejection (I almost auto-vote for the other item). It now has 7 votes against other sub-optimal entries. Quite sure that that particular item won't make top 32.

My method has become:

1)Template failure => advantage other item
2)Other item doesn't suck => item advances
3)Other item does suck => read template failure
4)Compare
5)Vote

Because
Superstars don't fail at using a given template.
Superstars create super items.

I understand the system, but I don't want to vote for crap.

Anyway, the system should / will also record that a pair was shown but recieved no votes. I don't know how Paizo will deal with this scenario, but it is a very real possibility.

Actually Mike, you're not an 'all years' entrant because I am quite sure you won't enter this year :-)

Thanks, but traps are easy, achieving superstardom is hard!

Sash of the Salty Seas
Aura faint transmutation; CL 5th
Slot belt; Price 12,300 gp; Weight 1 lb.
Description
This stiff, sea green, silk sash is covered with interlocking circles of salt. The sash grants the wearer a +3 competence bonus on Swim checks.

Three times per day the wearer of the sash can remove the salt from 1 gallon of sea water, this turns the water fresh and creates a tiny mound of salt.

Two times per day, as a standard action, the wearer of the sash can soak one target within 100 feet with sea water. The water quickly evaporates and coats the target in a thick layer of salt. The target gains the grappled condition and must defeat the salty coating’s CMD of 20 to break free.

Once per day, as a full-round action, the wearer of the sash can transform the sea’s surface to a thick, salty crust. You can walk, but not run or charge while on the crust. Up to 25 squares can be created in this fashion. Each 10 ft. square must be connected to another. Each square has hardness 1 and 30 hp. Unconnected squares sink to the bottom of the sea. This effect lasts for 1 hour.
Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, create water, hold person, water walk; Cost 6,150 gp

Some traps leave you dazed, confused and in a world of hurt

Goblins love fire! They're also crazy and cruel, the combination is something to behold.

Poor Robin feel victim to a bat, the trapsmith provides a solution

No cats were killed during the construction of this trap, or how trapsmiths use the resources at their disposal to the fullest

Congrats Mike!

You've earned it.

Review posted here and at RPGNow.

I submitted sodden ship and it is good to see that it is well-received!

Neil, you're a champ, I really appreciate the time that you and the other judges put into this contest.

Time is the most precious commodity, I truly appreciate every minute you put into this contest, thank you.

+1

and to add: this year the feedback, or to use a better word 'complaints', seem to be worse than previous years. People just don't seem to realize the pearls of wisdom they can glean from the process, which then can be used in next years competition.

I value Neil's advice, it has made me a better writer / designer.

Or to summarize: yes, your item was rejected. Freelancing is all about dealing with rejection.

Read => Learn => Improve.

Entered all 5 years, last year my item went to the keep folder. I've got a thread showcasing the progress I've hopefully made, you can find it under the rpgsuperstar general discussion.

Anyway, my advice would be to not limit yourself to RPG Superstar, I love the competition and chance that Paizo is offering but there are other freelancing opportunities available - if that is what you seek.

I just want a spiffy Paizo tag behind my name, be it RPG superstar or contributor ;>

Thank you Dale, haven't had a real writing credit in quite some time, so your recent message was most welcome!

For me, Wheel of Time, Anita Blake and the Sword of Truth all fell into the same trap. The main character ended up being the absolutely best of everything. The greatest swordsman AND the greatest mage AND the lost heir AND the chosen of a god and/or destiny AND blah blah blah. It is a sign the series has run too long when you have to stack more super powers on your main character to deal with the escalated risks over the last book. That kind of lazy power creep over a series kills it for me as much as anything else.

I totally agree - powercreep kills characters for me. Must be why I like G.R.R. Martin and Erikson (Malazan), they handle their powercreep most effectively - death solves everything

Intellectual Property Damage or how to use your head.

How am I supposed to feel better when there is noone there to hurt?

I want that on my T-shirt ;>

Traps eh?

Water Hazards
Deadly Darts,
Fear the Arrow,
Devious Pit Design,
Portcullis,
Hellish Fire,
Hand of God,
Corridor of Remembrance,
Refuse Pit,
Shadowspores,
Skull-on-a-rope,
Smoke and mirrors,
Boulders,
Swinging Blocks,
Water Hazard II,
Death by poison,
The Bite of Steel,
Funky Fungus,
Trapped Curio