Doug Miles's page

I heard that too. Purple monkey dishwasher!

Yes, it won't harm anything.

Great! I need to have a few levels to save up gold for the Raise Dead and Restorations. Part 1 tapped me out of gold and Prestige. Maybe I'll get a cupcake GM instead of Bulmahn next time around.

The Event Code is probably the least-completed field on the Chronicle sheet. Many coordinators create events and report after the fact, meaning they don't have an Event Code at the time they hand out the Chronicles. Once you give the sheet to the players it is out of your control. You can inform them of the code number once you have created it, but no one expects you to go back and complete it yourself.

Did Hawken's explanation of event reporting help you? Oh, and kudos to you for stepping up when your original coordinator flaked out. Although the community is getting better about reporting, I sense that many events go unreported. That hurts this campaign in the long run, since it affects how much of the Paizo budget pie Mike gets to use for PFS development. Thanks for doing your part, Thistledown. We need to get all events reported to grow the campaign and so Mark can develop more PFS scenarios every month [evil laugh].

I'm not sure if Bonekeep is related to Day of the Demon. I'd like to find out!

Bonekeep is tenuously related to Day of the Demon.

Welcome to the top of the Mountain, Rogue Eidolon!

Whoever organized the PFS games is responsible for reporting the sessions. That's not your direct responsibility, so you can relax. You should only be concerned if the sessions don't show up in a reasonable amount of time. Give the organizer a week at least, then check again. Not all organizers are Todd Morgan (inside joke, he's a session-entering machine).

If the sessions for your character don't show up, it will not exclude you from GenCon. The electronic information has several purposes. 1) It's a measurement for Paizo to tell how much PFS is being played. 2) It's a back-up in case a player loses their hardcopy Chronicles. 3) Other purposes people will soon list here because they love to correct me.

In essence, as long as you show up at GenCon with your paper Chronicle sheets in order, you will be fine. Have fun!

The gold on the Chronicle sheet represents the sum total of all the loot possible, sold for half value and divided by six. Any items that the PCs recovered that aren't "Always Available" (see the Guide to Organized Play page 25) are listed so players know what they have access to. If the PCs already have access to an item, why waste toner on the Chronicle, right? I hope that makes sense.

"Always available" items are things like 1st level potions and scrolls, mundane equipment, weapons & armor with +1 enhancement, etc.

Remember, anything the PCs find in the scenario vanishes at the end, miraculously replaced by the gold they are awarded on the Chronicle. If they found something they want to keep, they can buy it if they have the gold, now or in the future. What if a PC drank a potion of cure light wounds she found on a defeated opponent? No worries, a quirk of organized play allows for everyone to ignore that little accounting nuisance. No one loses any gold in the end for items consumed or sundered during the scenario.

Is poison (crafted or otherwise) even worth it in PFS? It seems like anything with a Fort save low enough to fail against the poison is going to get killed by the other PCs within a round or two anyways. Poison use sounds like a cool concept; can anyone who actually utilizes it give an example where it made a difference?

Warhorn also increases your visibility. I would say in Detroit Warhorn is the #1 tool for attracting new players. You just have to keep it updated. Also, there are many who refuse to use Facebook.

First of all, kudos to you for stepping up to promote PFS! Be warned, convention organizing is addictive. It can be challenging, especially if you are unprepared, but when the con ends you will feel the urge to do it again, to do it bigger and better the next time. It's exhausting but exhilarating.

If you are going to be the only GM, then what you are doing is very similar to starting a gameday at a local store. PFS has a 'Starting a Local Chapter' handout at the top of the Free Downloads section on the GM Resources page. Take a look at it if you haven't already.

Understand that you may not get enough interested players to run a legal game. I still remember sitting at a BASHCon table by myself in 2009 for several slots. Don't get discouraged. If so much as one player sits down to play, you can still work with them to build a character or give them a 7th level pre-gen and throw some low-CR monsters at them so they can learn the mechanics. It doesn't have to be a PFS-legal event to have some fun. What you are doing is building on the future. That one player has friends, and word-of-mouth is your best recruiting tool. Bend over backwards to win over local players because they'll probably be back next year.

If you do get a legal table off the ground, be prepared for success. Make some business cards with your contact information, and try (in a non-pushy way) to get the players to share their e-mail with you. Have a follow-up event planned in a couple of weeks, so if the players enjoy themselves they won't have to wait until next year to play again.

Make sure that you have the items mentioned in the handout from the first paragraph: pre-generated character sheets, blank character sheets, PFS membership cards, extra dice, pens and paper, miniatures for players to use, table tents, etc.

Don't think of yourself as a Game Master. Think of yourself as a cuentista; you are trying to get the players to imagine they are there, in the adventure, in mortal danger, fighting against despicable enemies. Don't get bogged down in the rules mechanics if your players are new to the system. Track their hit points for them. Describe the wounds they take in a way that they can understand. Be dramatic, keep the players engaged.

Like Jerry Seinfeld you leave at the height of popularity, in the high regard of your peers.
I hope you like Jerry Seinfeld.

One of the issues with the star system, though, is the lack of visibility. I have no idea how many stars some of the GMs at my lodge have - I can guess, and I can look up the ones that I've played under, but I don't know unless they tell me.

You should demand to see their PFS membership card! Their stars are included along with their PFS number. If they say they don't have it on them or they left it in the car, they are likely a saboteur from another RPG company. Seize their dice and call for the nearest Venture Officer.

It's telling that there's such a wide range of motivators. These messageboards are just a small sample of the active GMs out there. Can you imagine how hard it is for the campaign leadership to upgrade the GM Rewards model without disappointing some of us? I think the Stars next to our names have been very effective. You can tell by every time Matthew rolls his eyes ;) that peer recognition is a huge motivator in PFS. Sure, players saying "Thanks for the game" has gotten many a GM to their first star. But what keeps the donkey pulling the cart for 30-40 scenarios? It's the enticing carrot dangling a mere foot ahead of it.

What has gotten you to this point as a GM?
What could Paizo dangle in front of you to get you to GM another 30 scenarios before GenCon?

Per the Advanced Race Guide, pg 163 (inset):

Tengus with high Intelligence scores can choose any languages they want (except for secret languages, such as Druidic).

The other races in the ARG have a designated set of languages they may choose from. Since Tengu are gifted linguists, they can choose from the field.

This may be what you are looking for.

Sunlight Powerlessness (Ex) A wraith caught in sunlight cannot attack and is staggered.

Sorry about that John, I checked again and must have misread. I looked right at it and it still didn't register. There's not much hope when neither memory or sight are functioning. Thanks for the quick reply!

Question for a Developer:

A Bestiary 3 giant skunk has 27hp (5d8+5).
A dire skunk (Advanced template) is listed in the scenario at 37hp. The advanced template grants +2 to all ability scores, so it seems that it should have 32hp--unless it was meant to have the giant template (+4 Con) rather than the Advanced. Minor issue, but I'm doing stat blocks for GM Shared Resources and I'd like to know which is right.

Drogon, I've always admired your clear-minded posts and I can't argue with you on this one.

Here are my thoughts: While a rewards system beyond what’s been established is attractive, we have to face reality. Paizo has gotten where it is today by being tight-fisted. With John Compton being brought aboard as a PFS Developer, I am encouraged that the campaign is providing Paizo with a return on its investment. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean we should expect free merchandise and product discounts to follow. The company finances are the first hurdle. Next comes the time it will take an employee to develop the system and weight the rewards. Finally, and I don’t think this point has been raised yet, is the tendency of gamers to game the system. “I can get a 15% discount on PFS product if I GM 30 scenarios? And the PFS session reporting system has no identity verification capability? Time to make some ghost accounts and get me a discount!” Any rewards system that grants boons, merchandise or store credit is going to be abused. The only way to curb abuse is a more stringent reporting system, which may cost Paizo more than it’s worth.

Let’s say Paizo accepts that the rewards system will be abused. Those exclusive boons you want for GMing 60 scenarios? You’ll be able to buy them on e-Bay a month after the rewards program starts. Yes, that does happen already, but I’d anticipate it becomes widespread with a program where all you provide is an e-mail account and a birthday. Sorry for being so cynical.

I’ve gotten my rewards already. You know what motivates me? Recognition from my peers. I was the first 5-Star GM, the only one for a full year. I was one of the first 13 Venture-Captains created. I was Paizo’s Volunteer of the Year for 2011. I don’t need any more incentives to GM, I feel like I need to pay Paizo back for all the esteem I have received. Just as we all have our own idea of what makes a fun scenario, we all have our own personal motivators was well. Paizo found mine with the Star system. I can buy merchandise if I want it, I don’t need store credit. I think boons are a nice touch, but race boons are just making the campaign into a cartoon. There’s not anything that Paizo could give me as a reward me beyond saying ‘thank you’. Unless they grant my wish to prevent Dragnmoon from ever hitting 5-Stars ;-) Therefore my views aren’t really relevant to this thread, other than to shoot down other people’s ideas, which is why the internet was made.

Added PRPG stat blocks for PFS#0-03 Murder on the Silken Caravan, including NPC stats from the Gamemastery Guide. Also added a table tent with the sandstorm effects.

I concur with CRobledo.

Also, game abuse of this type is what led to the rule against lesser restoration scrolls scribed by paladins. Players should understand that if it looks too good to be true, they should tread carefully.

Congratulations Seth, you made it to base camp. Now the real journey begins :) No resting now!

Looks fine when I open it, try rebooting :)

There are several Season 0 scenarios where missions appear to be in direct opposition. Back when PFS was conceived the intent was to have a more competitive campaign with a winning faction named at the end of the season. Then things got watered down... (grumble). So, there are no clear-cut instructions on how to handle players who believe their missions are in opposition. Until it happens and there's a specific situation, we can sit and play the "What if..." game all day long. Use good judgment. Allow for creative solutions. If your players end up at each other's throats, gently explain that the rules were created so players wouldn't get bullied and they can't start a PVP fight. The people responsible for creating the conflict have moved on, and so should your players. Give both sides their PP. Everybody wins, hooray for mediocrity and fairness.

Thanks for pointing out the starvation & thirst section, Kolokotroni. RE: magic trivializing the danger, I was thinking about a low-magic campaign world such as in A Song of Ice & Fire.

Has anyone developed a micro-rules system for food & nutrition in Pathfinder? I assume that most players do not enjoy getting down to the nitty-gritty issues of how much food their PC must consume each day to maintain themselves. However, there might be a couple of lonely souls out there who have given it some thought.

What I mean is going beyond a Survival skill check to get along in the wild. It would involve assigning a food value to plants and animals, hopefully reflected in a flavorful table. A character would need to consume a set value each day or suffer progressively difficult starvation penalties. This could be reflected by fatigue/exhaustion or the sickened condition.

The Survival skill sets a DC for "getting along" in the wild, but does not actually describe consequences for failure to 'get along'.

If anyone knows of any links to other resources that could be used to generate some nutrition rules guidelines, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks!

Added the excluded 3.5 stat blocks (updated to PRPG) for Tide of Morning and Decline of Glory. Also uploaded a table tent with environmental adjustments for Act 1 of Decline of Glory.

It goes back to a conflicting idea of what is "fun". The concepts you listed are completely subjective. Also, views tend to shift as experiences expand, so good luck getting a unified vision of what this campaign needs. Someone's going to lose, and no one wants the short end of the stick.

I do not envy the campaign staff when it comes to making a 'correction' in the campaign rules.

I'll admit Dragnmoon has a decent natural armor bonus (thick skin). Hence, we have given up on the yeti-wrangling here on 5-Star Mountain...

Can we eliminate the Shadow Shackleton too?

Hmmm.... I do hope that Mike Brock acutally looks into it and finds out if it's really a "bad pfs site", rather than taking one disgruntled player's word for it.

You may be right. But, I'm a member of an online PFS community that's successful and that a lot of people are having fun in, and I'd hate to have us get in trouble because one disgruntled player complained. Whenever you have any online community, there's always somebody who thinks it's horrible and that the people in charge should be reported.

One of the great things about our Campaign Coordinator being a former police detective IRL is he doesn't jump to conclusions.

Belatedly, I have added a file with the monster stats that were not included in the scenario itself (normal howlers, gargoyles, babau, advanced yeth hounds, summoned fiendish giant spider, summoned dretch, summoned fiendish dire bat). I also included my take on the applicable monster knowledge checks.

Google Shared Resources "4-EX Unincluded (guess I should have said 'Excluded') Monster Stat Blocks & Knowledge Checks"

You could just open the Bestiary to get this info, but then you'd have to carry another book and the players could look over and easily see what page you have open. Any feedback would be appreciated.

I am also curious if I should have included the community use statement?

In a previous organized play campaign, Living Greyhawk, and in Season 0 & 1 of PFS, GMs received no credit for running scenarios. I was against the idea when Joshua Frost asked for our thoughts. I understand I am biased, so my argument against increasing the already generous GM rewards won't have much traction with those who are in favor. I suggest that a GM motivated by getting another Chronicle sheet may do more harm than good. I'd rather play under a GM who enjoys GMing for the sake of the community, because he or she wants to hone their skills or because they just have more fun that way. When someone says they're capable of GMing but won't do it because there is nothing in it for them, it makes a statement. Yes, the campaign needs more GMs. We might net a few more through further relaxing the rules. But I dislike what our community is losing in the exchange.

I welcome discussion, but I have said my piece. If Mike Brock comes into this thread and says he's considering this proposal, I'll be concerned. Otherwise, enjoy the academic discussion :)

Does that make him Indiana's first 5-Star since a mob of angry nerds threw Twilight Knight over the border into Illinois?

Congratulations Chris, you have reached the top of the Mountain. Your first task is to stand guard against a Dragnmoon incursion. I hope you won't mind the graveyard shift until the next 5-Star shows up--unless it's Dragnmoon, in which case you should pull the fire alarm and begin to detonate the claymores. Or you can play the "conscientious objector" card and sleep like Brock... ;)

The issue is that not everyone has fun the same way as you. I share a similar disappointment, but I try and remind myself that my job is to make sure the players are having fun. If having "fun" means they steamroll over the encounters and abuse the NPCs, then I shouldn't try and foil that. You may be recognizing a generation gap. Anyway, it's not me vs. them. It's entertainment. I blame the system that has become more mechanical since Edition 3.0, it's shifted the emphasis away from story and role-play.

I don't really start to enjoy a scenario until I have run it 3 or 4 times as a GM. That is my motivation to run a scenario multiple times; the players get a progressively better experience. I concur with TetsujinOni. In addition, all the work prepping a scenario is done on the front end. GMing the same scenario multiple times is like running downhill.

Oh, and P.S.: No promises about this book actually putting an end to all those paladin threads.

Maybe Paizo could develop a Player Companion about netiquette and the futility of academic arguments with total strangers? Oh, nevermind. No one would have any interest in reading that.

I don't know PFCBG, the Kiwis are pretty cool. It's the Aussies who tend to get rowdy and break up the joint.

Big Jay, best of luck to you in your organizing! I'm not tuned into Windsor, but if you have the option to come across the border there's weeknight gaming going on in Warren, Michigan 30 minutes from Windsor (not including the border delay). I visited Hugin & Munin before they moved to the current location. I'd love to see a PFS community bloom in Windsor. Previously you'd have to drive all the way to Guelph to find any PFS going on. It's going to be rough being the only PFS GM in town, so if you need some relief you only have to make a border run :)

I checked the Event Page and I didn't see your event show up. Newly created events will post instantly, so you should probably go back and take a look at it. It's probably trickier than making a US-located event, but perhaps the international organizers can pipe in with some suggestions. Make sure that your event has a date and location completed.

Mason Whitlark pfs.detroit@gmail.com, the Detroit Venture-Captain, is also a great resource to call upon.

Welcome to the top of the Mountain, Luke.

Actually Doug, players get 1 PP now in Master of the Fallen Fortress. This is per the newest Guide to PFS, p. 31.

I believe the restriction of having to be a "brand-new out of the box" PC has been lifted as well by PF management. This was done to avoid confusion. Sadly I don't have a link to this reference currently.

Thanks Nebten, I believe you. I hadn't realized that. I must have got tired of reading Guides.

Yeah, I like to edit my posts. For some reason that's bad netiquette, but I won't apologize ;)

I believe you are referring to Master of the Fallen Fortress. If you are, it is for brand new 1st level PCs ONLY. No PCs may have a Chronicle applied to them prior to playing this adventure. Master of the Fallen Fortress was written 3 years ago and is an artifact of earlier in the campaign. Nothing since has those kind of restrictions on it. It also does not grant any PP, since the assumption is the PCs are not members of the Pathfinder Society when they begin the adventure. That makes it an unpopular choice. I still think it is a better adventure than any of the First Steps when you introduce players to the Pathfinder RPG.

PFS characters need 3 XP to level up.
Master of the Fallen Fortress nets you 1 XP and takes about 5 hours to play.
The First Steps (In Service to Lore, To Delve the Dungeon Deep, and A Vision of Betrayal) series nets you 3 XP and requires 10-15 hours.
The Godsmouth Heresy is a full-length module, repeatable for 1st level characters (playable once for 2nd levels) and nets you 3 XP, taking about 8-10 hours to play.
Crypt of the Everflame and Murder's Mark are also full-length modules and use the same play rules as Godsmouth Heresy.

Also, I think Thornkeep is replayable but I'm not familiar with it.

Will hyperlink these, give me a moment

I don't think we should draw any conclusions from one player's bad experience.

Congratulations, you've made it to base camp. Now the really hard part begins! Best get up here soon, Operation Scorched Earth begins as soon as Dragnmoon is spotted--or rather the huge furball of enraged yetis that heralds his arrival.

Sometimes, the best you can do is make other people feel bad. -Dogbert

Thanks John. I appreciate you taking the time to address the issues. I look forward to running this and getting more player feedback.

What's funny is this same situation existed in PFS#0-09 Eye of the Crocodile King [Retired Scenario]. It used the original Sewer Map Pack and GMs again had to improvise when an otyugh was squeezed onto a ledge. On the flipside, a big difference is there's an option to negotiate with the otyugh in PFS#4-18. I wonder if PFS#9 author Chris Self (Paizo Finance Manager) shared his idea with intern Amanda Broadway? Granted, finding an otyugh in the sewer is not a revolutionary encounter.

Man, I hope you're not busy at work today Jiggy. It's gonna be a long one. You got some links handy?