Generic Villain's page

Can a wish spell restore youth? If so, how much? I'm not talking about wishing for immortality here - just a slight reversal of aging. A year? 5 years? What seems reasonable? Is it a reasonable wish at all?

Some spoilers below (speficially for the Serpent's Skull AP), so beware.

The new Distant Worlds book has really pulled the curtain back on Golarion's universe, and more importantly (for me), the nature of the Dark Tapestry and similar Lovecraftian elements. Not since Wake of the Watcher have we had so much info. So here's a continuation of my previous thread.

There's yet more evidence that Elder Things are responsible for the ruins at Golarion's north pole. Why do I say this? Under Akiton's description, it's noted that, at the Red Planet's south pole, one can find ruined "...structures completely unlike those on the northern pole, and obviously designed for inhuman forms." In the first part of the "Aliens" chapter, Elder Things are noted as being especially common hibernating on Akiton's south pole.

This suggests to me that Elder Things were some of the earliest inhabitants of both Akiton and Golarion. And if Golarion is anything like Lovecraft's Earth, that could very well mean that Elder Things are responsible for all life on Golarion. Furthermore, if the multiple hints are true, than Elder Things are also the builders of the Orvian vaults. Each Orvian vault is its own unique ecosystem, so one could assume that Golarion was like one huge laboratory for the Elder Things' varied experiments.

To diverge a bit: in The Thousand Fangs Below adventure, we find the Darklands serpentfolk city Ilmurea. Specifically, there's a place called the Runes of the Departed First. This area is preserved by the serpentfolk as a monument to the mysterious original inhabitants of their city, who "...predate the rise of sentient life on Golarion by centuries, if not by millennia." Could the creators of the Runes of the Departed First have been Elder Things? Did the serpentfolk war with them, or merely usurp their city long after the Elder Things abandoned it?

To veer away from Elder Things - Aucturn is apparently a single living entity, which is neat. Also, we have the first tantalizing clues about the nature of the Dominion of the Black. I'm not much of a sci-fi buff, but for anyone who is, does the Dominion remind you of anything? They're described as being heralds of their masters (whom I assume to be Old Ones and/or Outer Gods) who dwell in ships that float between the stars. Madness always follows them. I hope we'll learn more about them in the upcoming book that has a chapter on Ancient Osirion, because it seems the Dominion of the Black had a hand in that civilization's rise.

On the twelfth day of Cthulu-mas, my cultist gave to me...
12 unholy symbols
11 shoggoths piping
10 moon beasts-a-leaping
9 nighthaunts dancing
8 tentacles-a-twitching
7 Dagons-a-swimming
6 Shub-Nigguraths-a-laying (eggs filled with monstrous life)
5 blasphemous tomes
4 flesh-eating rat-things
3 reanimated corpses
2 whisperers in darkness
And an Elder God sleeping in R'lyeh

Just for fun, I decided to go through various PF products and compile a list of languages.

Are there any that I'm missing? Also, I'm not sure if "Gug" is still its own language. It's noted as a separate language in Into the Darklands, yet in Bestiary II, gugs simply speak Undercommon. Thus I'm assuming Gug is no longer a language.

Hi, please cancel my Pathfinder Roleplaying Game subscription. I'll be resubscribing when the funds are again available. Thanks.

I love the idea of a will-o'-wisp spellcaster - probably either sorcerer or summoner, but I have two major roadblocks. First (and I know this subject can be a bit controversial), can a will-o'-wisp use spells with somatic components? I'm leaning towards yes, with the caveat that it can't hold material components, and would thus take Eschew Materials.

My real concern, however, is the wisp's immunity to ALL magic that allows spell resistance. Should I treat this defense like spell resistance? In other words, could the wisp temporarily lower this immunity to buff itself with a spell like haste (which, while harmless, does allow SR)? I think the rules-as-written would plainly suggest no, as the wisp doesn't actually have spell resistance. But still.

Also, there is precedence for a wisp spellcaster. Way back in an early issue of Dungeon magazie...

Ultimately I know I can just handwave the above issues, but I like doing things "by the book." Thoughts? Suggestions?

This thread is for GMs who have purchased "Dungeons of Golarion." There will be spoilers, so please stop here if you're a player.

...

One of the six mega-dungeons featured in Dungeons of Golarion is the Red Redoubt, a place packed with all sorts of Numerian technology. More importantly, I interpret it as a testing ground for rules dealing with robots, science, and other sci-fi elements in the Pathfinder campaign setting. In this thread, James Jacobs had this to say regarding these new rules:

And perhaps more importantly, let us know what you think of it. Folks generally reply more quickly when they see something they don't like, and if we have 10 people hating Numerian content and posting on the boards while 1,000 people who love the content don't say a thing, we'll be more likely to assume that the content is more universally loathed than it is.

So what does everyone think?

I'll start. I love the Red Redoubt, and really appreciate the simple approach used to address technology. We don't have a bunch of new rules and subsystems - rather, "robots" are just constructs with the robot subtype, and powerful mechanical artifacts function like magical items with a few minor alterations. These elements can be easily integrated into any GM's game without having to overhaul the rules.

Furthermore, for GMs who have no interest in super science, the technological stuff can be ignored altogether. Don't want your PCs battling robots? Simply remove the robot subtype, and suddenly the bad guys in the Red Redoubt become arcane constructs just like any other golem. Think a "sonic sword" is too much? Well now it's a +1 thundering longsword. In this way, the Red Redoubt of Karamoss can function as either the high-tech laboratory of a crazed machine-mage, or the arcane workshop of a crazed golem-crafter, depending on how a GM chooses to use it.

I understand that this little preview doesn't address all the possibilities of Numerian super science, but it's an excellent start. We don't have stats for the mechanical scorpion illustrated in the Inner Sea World Guide, for example, but GMs can now officially stat up robotic soldiers. And that's pretty cool.

For anyone who needs a realistic castle for their next adventure, or just appreciates castle design in general, I stumbled on a great site.

If you're interested, check out this link and scroll down to the part that says "here are the contestants." A few of them are so-so, but others are just incredible. I really liked Anonkrankie Castle, Blaumannbourg Castle, Cragshaw Castle, FitzFirbolg Castle, Lumpkin Castle, Optipal House, Thornhaven Castle, and Tregarnet Hall.

The Carrion Crown adventure, Wake of the Watcher, has tons of info about Lovecraftian elements in Golarion. Just a head's up: you have to be pretty familiar with the Pathfinder Campaign Setting, as well as HP Lovecraft's work, for this post to have much meaning for you.

Here are some conclusions I've drawn...

First, it's outright stated that Nyarlathotep, in his incarnation as the Black Pharaoh, had a hand in developing Ancient Osirion. This has some interesting implications regarding the "countdown clocks" found in the Pact Stone Pyramid module. Maybe those clocks are counting down to when the Black Pharaoh returns? That would certainly be an epic event.

Also, it's strongly implied that the Elder Things had a hand in developing life on Golarion (just as was the case with Lovecraft's epic, "At the Mountains of Madness"). They were also at war with the aboleths. This leads me to a few guesses: first, the ancient city located at the top of the Crown of the World is actually an Elder Thing city. Also, the Vault Builders of Orv may have been Elder Things.

I imagine there are other implications hidden in this adventure as well.

Hi, I have some questions regarding store credit and my ongoing subscriptions.

1: Where do I buy store credit? Is it the same as Paizo gift certificates, found Here?

2: After purchasing store credit, I want to put that credit towards my ongoing subscriptions for July. Thus, say I buy $30 in store credit, then go to My Subscriptions page and check the "Use any available store credit for my subscription orders" option. When July's products ship, will the price first be deducted from the $30 store credit, with any remainder charged to my normal payment method?

Thanks for any clarifications.

You don't have to be an anthropologist to know that humans love a good tall tale. Over time, though, a strange thing can happen - people repeat the tall tale so often that they come to accept it as fact. And so the purpose of this post: to list groups of people who have, through no fault of their own, become so overshadowed by exagerrations and myths that what most of us "know" about them is complete bunk.

What I am not doing is insulting these people (please, oh please, keep that in mind). So if, for example, you're offended by what I have to say about samurai, consider this: samurai were real. They were living, breathing human beings, with all the flaws, struggles, and hardships that entails. They were certainly not honor-obsessed robots with supernatural levels of swordsmanship.

I am also not insulting people that enjoy these myths. If you're more passionate about the Hollywood portrayal of pirates than the (kinda depressing) real thing, that's fine. But I think it's important to know - and respect - the fact that such portrayals are totally unrealistic. And hey, knowing the reality behind the myth can make that myth much more fun.

And so, with no further ado...

Pirates
-The Myth: Free-wheeling rakes without a care in the world. Their days were spent sailing the high sees and robbing the ships of rich dandies, while their nights were given over to drinking, partying, and carousing. Basically, pirates made a living out of sticking it to the man.
-The Reality: A pirate's life was short, brutal, and unpleasant in just about every possible way. Starvation and disease were their constant companions, their ships were overcrowded, and their lifespans could typically be measured in months. Oh, and for the record, the "golden age" of piracy only lasted about 30 years.
-Why the Disconnect: For whatever reason, people like to idealize criminals. We continue to romanticize things like stealing and murder, creating folk heroes from what would otherwise be considered very unwholesome people.

Ninjas
-The Myth: Highly skilled assassins able to slip past even the tightest defenses to deliver silent death to their clan's enemies. They possessed borderline supernatural powers, such as being able to run on water, climb sheer walls, and deliver a cocktail of deadly poison with nothing more than a dart to the neck.
-The Reality: There were severeal. Some "ninjas" were little more than common villagers who were attempting to defend themselves from bandits and thugs. Because weapons and armor were prohibitively expensive, these simple people used whatever they could to fight off their enemies. Typically, this meant farming implements. Other "ninjas" were the very bandits and thugs that the former "ninjas" were so desperately fighting against. There were also actual "ninja clans," but they didn't resemble anything you would see in a Hollywood flick. The Fuma ninja clan, for example, were soldiers in service to the powerful Hojo family. The Fuma were not mystical assassins, however - they were soldiers, plain and simple.
-Why the Disconnect: Bruce Lee movies, Wuxia films, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... you get the idea.

Knights
-The Myth: A noble warrior sworn to uphold the tenants of chivalry. He protected the innocent, granted mercy to his enemies, refused to attack an unarmed man, and was always courteous to the ladyfolk. The knight was his lord's champion, defending the crown with honor and resolve.
-The Reality: Knights were very often thugs with the weapons, manpower, and legal authority to keep serfs (aka slaves) in line. That whole "chivalry" thing? A quaint bit of nonsense. Knights arose in Europe's Dark Ages when centralized governments had largely collapsed. The land's rulers needed a way to keep peasants in line, and the result was feudalism. A knight would battle his lord's enemies, true, but he may also rape and pillage that same lord's own people. It all depended on the knight in question.
-Why the Disconnect: The whole King Arthur fairy tale had a lot to do with it, I'm sure. The Canterbury Tales didn't help either.

Cowboys
-The Myth: Gunslinging outlaws who tamed the Wild West. Some were degenerate criminals while others were vigilantes fighting for justice.
-The Reality: Cowboys were ranch workers. Theirs was a physically demanding profession that didn't pay well, and certainly didn't allow for enough free time to single-handedly "tame" a territory as vast as the American West. Oh, and the American West was no where near as "wild" as cowboy mythology would have us believe.
-Why the Disconnect: The Western movie genre was, for decades, an enormous franchise. Thanks to the Lone Ranger, countless Clint Eastwood movies, and the dreams of an entire generation of little boys, the cowboy of legend now bears almost no resemblance to the cowboy of history.

Samurai
-The Myth: A master swordsmen sworn to uphold the tentants of Bushido. He was utterly devoted to his lord, gladly sacrificing his own life should his master but ask it. Honor was the samurai's greatest virtue - to him, all other things were secondary.
-The Reality: Pretty much the exact same as the knight, except in Japan. There is also a misperception that samurai were rare, elite warriors. In fact, during the 17th cenutry, it's thought that samurai made up around 4% of the population. Oh, and the whole code of Bushido? It's about as historically accurate as chivalry - which is to say, nonsense cobbled together from a few few historical sources. Samurai were known to have been treacherous, they retreated from battle, and were oftentimes common mercenaries. Also, there's the infamous ritual suicide (sepuku). It was typically carried out to avoid capture and potential torture at the hands of the enemy, not an effort to save face.
-Why the Disconnect: Hollywood certainly has something to do with it (The Last Samurai? So innacurrate it hurts), but the story goes deeper than that. During World War II, Japan - like any other country at war - resorted to propaganda to inspire its people. The samurai was transformed into an idealized caricature, and - like any other country at war - the people ate it up. Also, consider how ritual suicide suddenly became the most honorable way one could die... during the same war that gave us the Kamikaze tactic (which is, itself, rather misunderstood).

There you have it, five groups of people idealized to the point of absurdity. Yet this list is by no means complete. If anyone else would like to expand upon it, by all means please do. There are countless more folks who deserve to be recgonized for who and what they were, rather than what pop culture has made them out to be. Off the top of my head: druids, government spies, the mafia, psychopaths, biker gangs, hippies, Spartan warriors, the founding fathers, astronauts, lepers, forensic investigators, and vikings, just to name a few.

One last thing: I'm not a historian. I am, however, fairly well read. But if I've made a mistake above, feel free to let me know.

Oh the doppelganger simulacrum, how I want to love it. As a GM, I see this as an awesome way to make a recurring villain (ya might as well call it the "Manshoon simulacrum"). Yet, while the concept is fantastic, I'm baffled by the rules.

What exactly is the doppelganger simulacrum (DS)? As written, it is "...a soulless duplicate of [the alchemist's] body, into which he can project his consciousness." Erm, okay... but that doesn't really tell me what the DS is.

Does the DS function like the alchemical simulacrum discovery? If so, the DS has a duration of 1 hour/level, and the DS "...has no magical abilties." Or does it function like the greater alchemical simulacrum discovery? I doubt it, because you have to be 14th level to take that discovery, and only 10th level to pick up the DS discovery.

Also, the pricing is a bit weird. Producing a DS costs a flat 1,000 gp to produce. By contrast, using the lesser/greater alchemical simulacrum discoveries costs 100 gp per Hit Dice. Wouldn't it make more sense to have a DS follow that pricing method?

(First off, sorry if I'm posting this on the wrong board - not sure where it should go)

I wandered over to the product schedule and was a little shocked by what I saw for the month of July. While I'm probably one of the last people who would complain about too many Paizo products, July may just be my limit. Based on by subscriptions, I'll be getting 3 Adventure Path volumes, 4 Campaign Setting volumes, and the Ultimate Combat hardover. There's also 2 Player Companions and a Module.

I understand this is simultaneously due to Paizocon and an effort by Paizo to catch up on past delays. Still (and I never thought I'd say this)... I sort of hope some of this stuff gets pushed back.

Instead, they seem to all worship demon lords or archdevils. Here are some examples from various Pathfinder products:

By comparison, here are the two most powerful clerics I could find that worship actual gods:

I guess my real point here, is that there seems to be disproportionate love for the demon lords/archdevils. Is a priest of Orcus somehow inherently "cooler" than one of Urgathoa? Is a cleric of Nocticula more intriguing than one of Norgorber?

Or am I just being too nit-picky?

-Summary for the tldr crowd: how do you know what level spell certain spell-like abilities duplicate?

-Problem 1: Cleric domains, sorcerer bloodlines, and wizard school specializations (evocation, illusion, etc.) all grant spell-like abilities at 1st level. The problem is, these spell-like abilities are not given a level. For example, the air domain lets you use a spell-like ability called "lightning arc" 3 + Wis modifier per day, but what level spell is "lightning arc" treated as? This is important when it comes to questions like "what is the concentration check to see if I can use lightning arc?" or "can lightning arc penetrate a globe of invulnerability?"
-Possible answer: treat all those minor abilities as 1st-level spells.

-Problem 2: The Advanced Player's Guide infinitely complicates this matter. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for whether the ability granted by a cleric's domain/sorcerer's bloodline/wizard's school is spell-like or supernatural. For example, many of the 1st-level abilities granted by domains/bloodlines/schools are supernatural, while the abilities they replace are spell-like, despite both being useable 3 + (ability modifier) per day and having relatively minor effects. Furthermore, many high-end abilities are spell-like: for example, the starsoul's "breaching the gulf" ability sends a target into outer space, but again, what level spell should that be treated as?
-Possible answer: arbitrarily assign spell-levels to these abilities when the issue arises OR just say that all cleric/sorcerer/wizard abilities are supernatural, not spell-like.

So has anyone else had this problem? What solutions did you use? I'm looking for a simple and elegant answer here, but haven't come up with one myself.

Like many DMs, I like putting together soundtracks for adventures. Does anyone know any great music that would fit the Serpent's Skull AP?

I figure I'm looking for some African drum music to start with, and the soundtrack to the video game Eternal Darkness has some awesome "sneaking around in forbidden temple" music, but that's about all I can think of...

I'm curious as to whether it is realistic for Paizo to catch up on their product schedule. The Pathfinder Adventure Path is 1 month behind as of October. If I'm looking at my Order History page correctly, the Pathfinder Chronicles line is 2 months behind (there were no releases in June or July). I'm not sure about the other lines.

I have seen numerous attempts where Paizo attempted to catch up on their schedule, but all of them fell through. It appears that they will be attempting to catch up again as follows:

-Releasing 2 Pathfinder Adventure Path issues in May
-Releasing an issue of the normally bi-monthly Pathfinder Module in 2 back-to-back months in April and May
-Releasing 2 Pathfinder Chronicles issues in both March and April
-Releasing an issue of the normally bi-monthly Pathfinder Companion in three back-to-back months in April, May, and June.

Furthermore, the hardback "GameMastery Guide" is set to come out in May, while the hardback "Advanced Player’s Guide" has an August release date.

So again, what are the odds that these deadlines will be met? By the looks of it, April and May are going to be months from Hell.

This is not meant as a criticism of Paizo in any way; in fact, I am making this thread precisely because of how much I appreciate the quality products Paizo produces. If I didn't love their work, I wouldn't care two spits about when their next release was (or wasn't). It's just that, when I am anticipating a product to be released in, say, November, only to have it actually released in January, that's a dissappointment and occasionally an inconvenience. I would much rather be told that the product would arrive in January in the first place.

Hey all. I've looked through the rules, and can't seem to answer two questions about favored class benefits.

First, can an NPC class (adept, aristocrat, commoner, expert, or warrior) be chosen as a favored class? I ask this after designing some goblin warriors, and wondering whether or not to give them bonus hit points.

Second, can monsters with racial Hit Dice have a favored class? A green hag cleric, for example, or a troll barbarian? I think the answer is yes, but I'm not sure.

Thanks for any suggestions/help.

So apparently there are multiple breeds of kytons (aka chain devils), with the one in the Bestiary being the most common. According to Book of the Damned, Princes of Darkness, there are at least two other types of kytons: an oitos (apparently appearing as a skeleton wearing fleshy robes) and an ephialtes (apparently a particularly massive kyton).

I was never a huge kyton fan, but the Paizo version has me really intrigued. Is there any more information on kytons? Anything official that could be shared?

Also, I'm trying to put together a kyton sorcerer bloodline. Any comments/suggestions would be welcome. Here's what I have so far...

I have two separate questions regarding spell-like abilities (Sp).

-First, can spell-like abilities be counterspelled? According to the description of page 221, "spell-like abilities cannot be used to counterspell, nor can they be counterspelled". However, on page 554 it states that "spell-like abilities can be dispelled and counterspelled as normal". So which is it?

-Secondly, a number of the powers granted to wizards for specializing in an arcane school (such as the necromancer's grave touch or the transmuter's telekinetic fist) are spell-like abilities. However, there is no indication on the level of these spells. Therefore, it's impossible to know if a globe of invulnerability would protect against them, whether they can be absorbed by a rod of absorption, etc.

Thanks to anyone who can enlighten me.

So I was making a gelatinous cube Sorcerer (the "brain cube" mentioned in Dungeon Denizens Revisited), and the description mentioned that such cubes can only cast spells with somatic components by using Still Spell. That got me thinking.

What sort of creatures can actually make the gestures for somatic spells? Can a roper wizard wave its tentacles? How about an awakened octopus druid? Shouldn't somatic components be dependent on the form of the caster, rather than just assuming that "only creatures with human-like hands can use them", which seems to be the current stance?

I just got through reading The Great Beyond, A Guide to the Multiverse, and let me just say that it exceeded my expectations. Absolutely inspired, and an equal of even the finest Planescape products.

That said, I have one big question about the size of the Great Beyond. Namely, why did the creators decide to make the Outer Planes finite? I understand that they are, for all intents and purposes, so-big-as-to-be-effectively-infinite, but the decision to put an actual size restriction on them struck me as odd. After all, wouldn't the planes eventually "fill up" with souls, given enough time?

This leads to my second question; just how large is the plane of Axis? Is the map on page 31 a scaled representation of the place, or merely a symbolic one? I sort of took it as symbolic, and picture Axis as a planet-sized city, on par with the other planes.

Lastly, a question that has already been asked and discussed, but that I don't think is adequately answered; once on the outer planes, can you eventually reach any of them just by walking/riding? I understand that the planes are bordered by the Maelstrom in a kind of no-man's land. So, if someone started walking from Axis, and slogged through the Maelstrom, could they reach Hell? In the same spirit, could you fly skyward on a given plane and eventually enter the Astral?

I really like the new Pathfinder method for generating intelligent magic items; it's a lot more flexible and intuitive, methinks. So I decided to make up some Golarion-specific intelligent items. Hopefully someone can find a use for these...

Talon of the Savant
Aura: Strong transmutation and evocation; CL: 12th
Slot: Weapon; Price: 122,305; Weight: 1 pound
Alignment: NE; Ego: 16
Int: 15, Wis: 10, Cha: 16
Communication: Empathy, speech
Languages: Common, Undercommon, Terran
Senses: See and hear to a range of 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft.
Powers: Darkness 3/day, major image 1/day (Will DC 16 disbelief), confusion 1/day (Will DC 17 negates), 5 ranks in Perception (total modifier +5)

In centuries past, the mighty derro savant Kontak brought six of his favored apprentices together and set before them a task. They were to forge a weapon both elegant and deadly. The young derros took to their task with relish, eager to prove themselves in their master’s eyes. In a few months they were done, and with no small pride presented the talon of the savant, a claw of blackest adamantine that glowed with the pale blue light of cytillesh fungus. Kontak was thoroughly disappointed. Although his students had done a fine job with their magical craftsmanship, they had ultimately failed their true test: to realize they were being led into a trap. For, as the young derros worked on their weapon, Kontak had unknowingly also woven spells into the talon’s cold metal. The master sprung his magical trap with but a word, and a moment later each of his apprentices lay dead, their combined life-forces drained into their own creation.
Much to his surprise, Kontak found that the talon of the savant had spontaneously developed its own sentience. The personalities of his former students (if not their souls) now infused the weapon. Rightfully fearing that his new prize might desire revenge against him for his betrayal, Kontak swiftly sold the thing to a duegar merchant, where it would go on to pass through numerous hands over the years that followed.
When the six students were killed, their psyches became fused into a single, hateful whole. The resulting consciousness seems fractured at times, speaking as it does with several different voices—three male and three female, all distinctly derro. It has a habit of switching voices mid-sentence, and occasionally even speaks with multiple voices at once, though it always favors a sinister whisper. The talon of the savant does not have any grand objectives; it merely wishes to spread pain, corruption, and madness wherever it can. It takes particular delight in seeing sentient beings subjected to torture, especially if that torture is performed for scholarly or scientific reasons.
The talon of the savant is crafted from dozens of individual adamantine plates, expertly shaped and carefully linked, with the result somewhat resembling a glove of black scales. The wicked claws at the end of each finger only accentuate this reptilian appearance. The talon functions as an adamantine +4 frost defending spiked gauntlet that also has the capabilities of a glove of storing. It can glow with an unhealthy bluish-white radiance, identical to that produced by cytellish fungus, providing bright illumination in a 10-foot radius and shadowy illumination in a 20-foot radiance. Unlike most light-generating magic weapons, the talon of the savant’s glow can be activated or suppressed with a command word. Though it was forged by derros, the talon is a Medium weapon (it was originally intended as a gift to a drow matriarch).
Requirement: Craft Magic Arms and Armor, Craft Wondrous Item, chill metal or ice storm, shield or shield of faith, shrink item, darkness, major image, confusion, creator must have at least 5 ranks in Perception; Cost: 62,655 gp

This item was partially inspired by Alicavniss's "Maiden's Caress" item from Pathfinder 16.

Yes, I love driders. They're creepy, powerful, and fantastic bad guys. Pathfinder's new take on driders is only a further improvement, in my opinion.

But I've also always had a problem with them: I think drider should be a template. As it is, all driders have the spellcasting powers of a 6th-level wizard or cleric, but this doesn't jive with me. What about drow who were formerly other classes? What sort of driders do they become?

Now there is a drider template on WotC's site from many moons ago, which I could repost here if anyone's interested (I don't have a link, but I save that page for future use). But it leaves much to be desired. So are there any ideas for making driders of other classes? Comments/suggestions?

I think the best way would be to take a drider, strip it of spellcasting power, then add the special abilities of a 6th-level class to it. Thus, a drider rogue would have sneak attack +3D6, trapfinding, evasion, etc.

So I was intrigued by the description of a creature called the hallowed lynx in Pathfinder 12 - Crown of Fangs. It's mentioned briefly on page 54 as a now-extinct magical beast, and Runelord Sorshen apparently had one as a pet. I dunno why, but the idea really intrigued me. I don't know what plans Tito Leati had for it, but I decided to stat one up in 3.75 format.

Comments/suggestions welcome. Specifically, feel free to check out what I did with the improved grab/rake/pounce special attacks. They're pretty complicated, so I tried to be clear about how they work together; not sure if I got it right.

Hallowed Lynx
N Large Magical Beast; CR 15
HD: 19D10+114 (218 hp)
Init: +5
Speed: 60 ft.
Senses: Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +12
AC: 28, touch 20, flat-footed 23
(-1 size, +5 Dex, +6 deflection, +8 natural)
DR: 15/magic
Resist: Electricity 10, fire 10
SR: 22
Base Attack: +19; Grapple: +30; CMB: +27
Melee: Claw +26/+26 melee (1D6+7), bite +24 melee (1D8+3 plus improved grab)
Melee: Rake +25/+25 melee (1D6+3)
Ranged: Light ray +23 ranged touch (3D6)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Light ray, nimbus, magic strike, improved grab, pounce, rake 1D6+3
Special Qualities: Unearthly grace, globes of light
Fort: +17, Ref: +16, Will: +10
Str: 25, Dex: 20, Con: 22, Int: 5, Wis: 14, Cha: 23
Skills: Stealth +14 (+12 with globes of light), Perception +12, Acrobatics +14
Feats: Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack, Multiattack, Weapon Focus (claw), Weapon Focus (bite), Iron Will
Languages: Common (cannot speak, but can understand)

-Low-Light Vision (Ex): A hallowed lynx can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. It retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
-Scent (Ex): A hallowed lynx can detect approaching enemies and sniff out hidden foes by sense of smell. It can identify familiar odors just as humans do familiar sights. The hallowed lynx can detect creatures within 30 feet by sense of smell. If the creature is upwind, the range is 60 feet; if downwind, the range drops to 15 feet. Strong scents, such as smoke or rotting garbage, can be detected at twice the above ranges. Overpowering scents, such as skunk musk or troglodyte stench, can be detected at triple normal range. When the hallowed lynx detects a scent, the exact location of the source is not revealed– only its presence somewhere within range. The hallowed lynx can take a move action to note the direction of the scent. Whenever it comes within 5 feet of the source, the hallowed lynx pinpoints the source’s location.
-Light Ray (Su): As a swift action, a hallowed lynx can unleash a ray of searing energy from one of the globes of light that hover around it. This attack has a range of 60 feet (no range increment) and deals 3D6 damage on a successful hit. This damage has no specific type, and so is not subject to damage reduction or energy resistance. Light ray deals half damage to objects. The hallowed lynx must have its globes of light ability active to use this ability, and must wait 1D4 rounds after using light ray before it can do so again.
-Nimbus (Su): As a standard action, a hallowed lynx can cause its globes of light to flash, strobe, and dance in a manner that leaves its foes dumbstruck. Creatures within 30 feet of the hallowed lynx that have line of sight to it must make a DC 25 Will save or be stunned for 1D4 rounds. They must also make a DC 25 Fortitude save or be dazzled for 1 minute. The hallowed lynx must have its globes of light ability active to use this ability, and must wait 1 minute after using nimbus before it can do so again. A creature can attempt to avert its eyes from the hallowed lynx’s nimbus as if it were a gaze attack (thus allowing for a 50% chance of not having to make a saving throw, but also granting the hallowed lynx concealment). This is a visual effect, and the daze-inducing aspect of nimbus is also a mind-affecting effect (the dazzle-inducing aspect is not). The save DCs are Charisma-based.
-Magic Strike (Su): A hallowed lynx’s natural weapons are treated as magic for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction.
-Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a hallowed lynx must hit a Medium or smaller creature with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold, pulls the creature into its square (this does not provoke an attack of opportunity), and can rake in the following round (though if it pounces, it can rake in the same round; see rake below). The hallowed lynx deals bite damage (1D8+3) with a successful grapple check instead of dealing unarmed strike damage.
-Pounce (Ex): If a hallowed lynx charges a foe, it can make a full attack.
-Rake (Ex): A hallowed lynx gains two rake attacks when it grapples. Rake attacks aren’t subject to the usual –4 penalty for attack with a natural weapon in a grapple. The hallowed lynx must begin its turn grappling to use its rake attacks, and cannot begin a grapple and rake during the same turn. There is one exception to this though; if the hallowed lynx uses its pounce ability by charging, makes a bite attack as its primary attack (forgoing its claw attacks for that round) and successfully establishes a grapple in that manner, it can make both rake attacks immediately thereafter in the same round.
-Unearthly Grace (Su): A hallowed lynx adds its Charisma modifier (if positive) as a deflection bonus to its Armor Class.
-Globes of Light (Su): A hallowed lynx is surrounded by immaterial, gently glowing globes of light. These pale yellow spheres vary in size from an inch to about a foot in diameter, and drift lazily around the creature. This display sheds shadowy illumination to a radius of 10 feet, but also causes the hallowed lynx to suffer a –2 penalty on Stealth checks. The hallowed lynx can suppress its globes of light as a free action, but activating them again takes a standard action. The hallowed lynx must have its globes of light active to use its light ray and nimbus abilities.

I love demigods. Maybe it's the underdog appeal, or maybe, as I suspect, they're more creative than the "core" gods. See, every campaign needs a death god. And a nature god. And a LG paladin god, a trickster god, a war god, and a smattering of evil gods. A few racial gods are important too. My point is, I think when it comes to designing the core gods, the designers are sort of creatively stymied. I mean I love what they did with Urgathoa for example, but in every evil death god is going to follow a simila archetype.

But minor gods, that's a whole different story. You can let all sorts of weirdness fly with these guys, and never have to justify that weirdness, because hey... they're just minor gods anyway. So I've decided to comb through the Paizo products I have and make a list of these unsung divinities. I don't own all the Paizo stuff though, so I'm sure I'm missing at least a few.

So now, in no particular order, are the minor gods of Golarion.

-Chamidu: Vudran goddess of beasts. Depicted as a six-armed, four-faced giant who rides a tiger with human hands for paws.
Source: Pathfinder 9, page 33

-Diomazul, Serpent of Eigthy Blades: Vudran god of ruthless fury and cruelty in battle. Depicted as a snake with dozens of arms, each wielding a blade.
Source: Pathfinder 9, page 54

-Achaekek, the Mantis God: LE demigod (sort of), he is the assassin of the gods.
Source: Pathfinder 9, page 81

-Ghlaunder: CE demigod of parasites and infection. Said to appear as a giant mosquito.
Source: Pathfinder 2, page 70

-Droskar: Evil dwarven god of toil.
Source: Hollow's Last Hope, page 9

-Apsu: LG god of dragons, glory, leadership, and peace. Sire of metallic dragons, and enemy/father of Dahak. His mate was once Tiamat.
Source: Pathfinder 4, page 62

-Dahak: CE god of destruction, dragons, evil, and treachery. Universally hated by all dragons.
Source: Source: Pathfinder 4, page 62

-Tiamat: Along with her mate Apsu, she may have created Golarion.
Source: Source: Pathfinder 4, page 61

-Fandarra: N goddess of birth, death, earth, and knowledge. Worshiped mostly by stone giants.
Source: Pathfinder 4, page 56

-Minderhal: LE god of creation, justice, giants, and strength. Now worshiped only by stone giants, but was once far more popular.
Source: Pathfinder 4, page 56

-Urazra and the Bear Cult: God of battle, brutality, and strength. A new faith, followed mostly by stone giants.
Source: Pathfinder 4, page 57

-Lissala: Former goddess of runes, fate, and reward of service. Her faith is now dead.
Source: Pathfiner 1, page 78

-The Peacock Spirit: Former god of the mind, body, and soul. This dead faith was intentionally shrouded in mystery.
Source: Pathfiner 1, page 78